As an American born into freedom and liberty, I had no perception of censorship. I quickly learned the value of freedom of speech, forced to carefully craft anything I said in public. In my AFS family, I stifled my horror when I learned the father with whom I was staying had arranged a marriage for his oldest daughter; despite the fact she was in love with a different man. Instead of voicing my outrage, I learned to share my sorrow and tears with his daughters behind closed doors. I learned about the insidious nature of authoritarianism. I learned to channel my anger and the timing into promises for the future and the country I loved.