Lucy CP-3

I met my second Conversation Partner, a guy by the name of Awaad Assiri, who interestingly enough is Tayana (my other Conversation Partner)’s Tutoring Partner. Small world in CIES. I quickly assured him that Tayana definitely knows her English grammar better than I do. I admire these international students so much. Awaad was super laid back and nice. I at first was a bit tentative because I figured he was Arabic, so I came to the meeting very conservatively dressed and prepared to really play up the fact that I live with my parents, but off the bat, I could tell he was going to be kind and open no matter where his views lie. We met at Blackdog Café at first because I forgot that he was my Conversation Partner and I thought he was my Tutoring Partner, just got mixed up in the head, you know, but it turned out perfectly because we were able to walk around the lake and chat AND as I remembered (My sister and I lived in a townhouse nearby when we were in school) there is an awesome Farmers Market held just outside of Blackdog on (hey hey) Wednesday afternoons.  So Awaad is from Abha, Saudi Arabia and came to the U.S. to study English so that he can continue to study Economics here, and because he heard we were the friendliest and he knew he needed ‘talk time’. Perfect! I fit that bill! So off we went, bounding chitchatty and happy around the lake. There was a bit of a culture difference when he told me how he thinks his father will take on another wife, besides his mom, but I just nodded politely. He’s Muslim, I’m not—it’s cool.  Another glitch was ending our time together…I didn’t quite know how to? He invited me (and I could bring my boyfriend) to dinner, but I was tired. I said no, but I wonder if I should have said yes, because I know that ‘breaking bread’ can mean a lot to people. Maybe in his mind or culture, I snubbed him? He seemed a bit put out by my declining the invitation. But hey, there will be many more times, I assured him of that. So, off into the sunset goes sweet Awaad. Next week, I’ll invite him to dinner.