PengTao and I had our first meeting at the bookstore midway through the semester. He is from a smaller city in China which is just a little bigger than Fort Worth. We exchanged the usual pleasantries like him being an only child, and how he misses his parents and how much he loves America. One of the most interesting facts I took away from our conversation was the fact that age is counted differently in China. Apparently, in China, they start counting age from conception in the womb so people are technically 9 months older than someone who from America who is born on the same day. It was just a fun fact that sparked an interesting thought in my head about the ignorance I sometimes have of the global community around me. Something as common as the age of a person can vary around the world just as easily as the language or food.
I asked James (which is the American name he has adopted) what one of the things he wants to do most while in America. He immediately responded that he wanted to learn how to drive. Whenever I asked him, “why?”, he responded that he had actually never driven a car before in China because it isn’t the most popular form of transportation. It just made me think how much time I spend in the car, whether it’s just driving around Fort Worth, or home, or even to California for the Rose Bowl. It seems like I have been driving forever, when in reality it has been barely five years since I began to drive. One of my favorite things to do is take long road-trips listening to music and admiring the scenery. It’s crazy to me to think that the time it takes me to pass through a state in the USA, someone in Europe could be in a totally different country.
James seemed like he had made such a seamless transition to life in America, but when he first arrived in August, I can’t even imagine what it must have been like. I left our first meeting really wondering how differently our childhoods were and what we were going to talk about at our next meeting.
Tyler it seems that you had a moment of insight and global awareness with James. It seems as though you and James learned a lesson that went much further than the superfluous mundane conversation. The age part was fascinating, an interesting topic to come across in conversation. I am sure that it led you to your moment of reflection. I look forward to your further blogs and encounters with James, as I know the time that you spend with someone who is far different from yourself is a great learning process.
ReplyDeleteTyler,
ReplyDeleteI never knew that about the way age is perceived in China, thanks for sharing. Sounds like you and James are off to a good start to have some more interesting conversations. I had never thought about how much I drive until my freshman year of college when I was without a vehicle. It seems so normal to know how to drive and to do so in our country; I never thought about not having that. Maybe you can help him learn more about driving in America!