Multimedia Reporting (Adler-Utsler)

Rex Ryan’s senior photo sits on the music stand of his grandma’s piano. He’s wearing a black suit and bow tie, a far cry from the polos and sports jerseys most senior boys wear for their pictures. Rex has a long history of being different than his classmates. In elementary school, he read Charles Dickens and Jane Austen and did his math in roman numerals to make it more interesting. Before his 18th birthday he taught himself Latin and German and learned seven instruments. Rex also happens to be the only one in his class planning to move to Britain and become the first American-born Member of Parliament.

He has it all planned out. First, he’ll get accepted to Oxford University and graduate with a degree in philosophy, politics and economics. Then he’ll and get a job as a political aid or at a think tank for Britain’s Conservative party. After five years in the U.K., he’ll get his citizenship, volunteer in elections, and then, when the time is right, Rex will run for Parliament.

“I don't think it seems crazy, but crazy people don’t seem crazy to themselves,” Rex said. “I just know this is something I want to do.”

Rex’s weighty ambitions seem at odds with his life thus far. He grew up in Napoleon, Mo., population 208, and has never traveled outside of the U.S., let alone to England. But his fascination with Britain dates back to childhood. While other kids were outside playing, he was inside reading about Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher.

“They had deep convictions and a vision for Britain,” Rex said. “I’d like to think I have that, too.”

So rather than living his life wondering “What if?”, Rex is jumping in head first.

“I’m not sure that he’s 100 percent clear on the implications of this in his life,” Rachael Gieschen, Rex’s aunt, said. “I don’t know if he’s entertained a fallback plan, but he’s determined to succeed.”

Rex credits his determination in part to his status as an only child.

“People with siblings have a different development than people without them,” he said. “They are more focused on social skills. I started with a limited capacity for social skill development and always felt like an outsider looking in.”

Last year, Rex and his parents moved from Napoleon to the neighboring town of Wellington. The move increased his desire to graduate high school and leave Missouri behind.

“In Wellington you have to have a certain name, or money, or go to the right church to be accepted,” He said. “I’ve never felt welcome. Other people would get angry at that, but I agree. I don’t think I belong here either.”

Unlike his small hometowns, Britain has always felt right to Rex. The shelf in his room is filled with British history books and encyclopedias of British monarchs. He drinks hot tea in the morning, uses British spellings for his homework and entertains himself by writing pieces of legislation for Parliament. He dreams of living in London, surrounded by city lights and watching the BBC every night.

But first, he has to get accepted to Oxford. And the process is a lengthy one: a written application due in September; an online application due in October; an exam in Houston and an interview in New York City in early November.

“It’s like a long series of hoops,” he said. “Any of the hoops I’m jumping through could be life-changing.”

If admitted to Oxford, Rex would be one of 1,400 American students studying at Britain’s oldest and most prestigious university. If he isn’t admitted, he’ll study at a backup school like the University of Glasgow or the London School of Economics. Either way, come next fall, Rex is moving to the U.K.

“I suppose we all thought he would just grow out of this phase,” Gieschen said. “But he never has. His goal has always been to become a Brit.”

For Rex, it all comes back to the desire to live without regret.

“I could pursue a career in something else. But if I were 70 and I looked back, I would feel like I had wasted an opportunity,” Rex said. “Philosophically, this means everything. It’s a test of the system to see, ‘Can people have what they want?’”

And, perhaps more important than personal fulfillment, a seat in Parliament would ensure that the penchant for formal wear displayed in Rex’s senior picture will never go to waste.