A wise man once said, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” My journey began with a stumble. Perhaps it was because I had been anticipating for so long my People to People trip to Washington, D.C., the journey and new experiences, and the friends I would meet along the way.

This was a journey that began with a letter of recommendation from my sixth grade Language Arts teacher Melissa Williams at South Orange Middle School. Now, 10 months later, I had finally arrived at a World Leadership Forum. But when we stepped into the hotel that would be my home, the only faces I saw were unfriendly and only made me more sensitive.

Slowly I began to see that those unfriendly faces were nervous students like me. They were from all over the country, from states like Iowa, Arizona and California. Some were from other countries, including South Africa. One girl even lives up near the North Pole. Together we began to take more confident steps. We explored famous places, like the Library of Congress, enjoyed a delicious dinner at the Ethiopian Embassy, and cruised and danced on a boat on the Potomac River. We met many interesting people, including a White House journalist who has covered every president since Ronald Reagan as well as the current president, Barack Obama.

Without my first hesitant step this journey would never have happened. People to People is one of those rare experiences you never forget. I learned I had been accepted when my parents received a letter from Mary Jean Eisenhower. Her grandfather, U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower, founded People to People in 1956 because he believed peace could be achieved through understanding. We talked with other families and students who had attended People to People programs. Everyone said it would be one of the greatest weeks of my life.

Some mornings I felt like I was driving through a tunnel. Events blurred by and the days ended too soon. Yet, I have a solid memory of everything, and every event is preserved in my camera and writing. Not only did we learn about other places and people, but also about ourselves. I learned what makes a good leader, and about citizenship and serving our country and community. We met with former U.S. Congressman Bill Hudnut from Indiana, who urged us to stand up for what we believe in.

Our days began with a loud alarm, slow getting up, calm dressing, and a great breakfast. We visited the Smithsonian’s Air and Space Museum (my highlights being the Wright Brothers' plane, Amelia Earhart’s plane, and the Spirit of St. Louis). I played an international sleuth at the Spy Museum. I portrayed a TV news anchor at the Newseum. I was intrigued by the architecture and art of the Capitol and was especially fascinated by the library with thousands of books on every subject imaginable. Nearly all the original books owned by Thomas Jefferson were there. Some were copies given to him by Ben Franklin and other great men. I was awed by the many types of literature owned by the author of our Declaration of Independence. There were books on zoology, medicine, even surgery.

We traveled to Jamestown and boarded the Discovery, one of two ships the first colonists arrived on. I helped our guide on the ship demonstrate how to find the depth of a body of water. I flung a rope with a lead weight on one end and flags tied six feet apart into the water. When I hoisted up the rope, not only did we learn that the depth of the river was 18 feet, but that the mud on my hands could reveal if the ship was near an ocean or a forest. Sea shells in the mud told an ocean was near; pine needles foretold of a pine forest just around the bend.

In Williamsburg we saw reproductions of the court houses, prison and shops. In one shop, the “Wigery,” we learned about the fake hair you see being worn in all those paintings of people who live in the 1700s. If people wanted a wig, they would choose where the hair came from: girl, yak, or goat. Then the hair would be spun and fitted. One wig cost the same as two oxen or 16 pairs of shoes.

Arlington National Cemetery was one of my personal favorites. It was so interesting and somewhat depressing to see all those graves. My mood was lowered further at the Holocaust Museum. The prison suits, the murders, the sick human beings who started it all, and the horrific images of the dead will haunt me forever.

We also visited the famous memorials and monuments. We laid a wreath and held a moment of silence at the World War II Memorial. I photographed the Marine Corps War Memorial (also known as the Iwo Jima Memorial), with its famous sculpture of the soldiers planting the American flag. We also performed a service project titled “Giving Back: A Letter to a Soldier.” We all wrote letters to soldiers fighting in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. I wrote a letter of thanks to a soldier who had died for our country: “I deeply thank you for wearing that uniform and holding that gun and using them in order to help your country. You will never be forgotten.” I was told the letter would be placed in the archives in the Smithsonian. “I honor and thank you,” I wrote. “I know that what you went through was hard and I promise to remember.”

I met many nice people at People to People. Saying goodbye was difficult. Everyone let me be myself. I feel like I truly took steps to being a leader. I will never forget the sights I saw, the people I met, and the lessons I learned at People to People in 2009. May my next steps toward becoming a leader be just as enjoyable and memorable.

Holly Joyce Lehren is a seventh grader at South Orange Middle School.