Cafe Conversation

I met with Nathan for the third time last week after class on Thursday. We met in the library cafe again and this time I brought my computer. I'm so glad I did because it gave us a lot of talk about. I was working on homework when he arrived and he immediately assumed I was on Facebook. I asked him if he had a Facebook and he said yes. So I logged on and added him as a friend. Then I decided that Facebook would be a good way to show Nathan pictures of my family and my home.

First I showed him a picture of my twin sister, Hilary. Most of her pictures feature her jumping over barriers and water obstacles as she runs the steeple chase so he was impressed by her athletic lifestyle. I then showed him a picture of us side by side. He said we did not look alike at all and that he would not have guessed we were twins. Then I showed him pictures of my older brother, Nathan, in Seattle. I visited Nathan, my brother (not my conversational partner), during spring break so we took a few pictures. Then I showed him a picture of my mother and some of the things that we did in Seattle.

Lastly, I showed him pictures of Oregon which made me somewhat homesick for the mountains. Nathan thought my pictures were very beautiful and expressed interest in traveling to other parts of the United States. I asked him if he had considered traveling around the U.S. during the summer. He said that he wanted to but that it was difficult and very expensive because the U.S. is so spread out. In Europe one can travel from country to country simply by catching a train. That is exactly what he plans to do this summer. He and a few of his friends have a planned a trip to go to Italy, Spain, and a few other countries by train this summer. He is very excited to be back in Europe and with familiar faces.

I asked Nathan if he was planning on returning to TCU in the fall and he was unsure. He says that he likes TCU and that school here is easy for him but that he misses his friends and family in Belgium. He has one sister here but I think she has become accustomed to Texas in a different way than him. Nathan seems to be strongly tied to his friendships in Belgium and I wouldn't be surprised if he transfers to a Belgium university that is in his hometown. He said that he has already applied and been accepted to the university so all he has to do is make a decision.

I told him that I thought it was brave of him to decide to study here in America, especially since he knew so little English. He said that he was glad that he came and that he has learned a lot of English but that a year without family and friends is really hard. I can't imagine not being able to go home for an entire year. My first semester of college I was separated from my twin until Christmas and that was hard enough!

Nathan and I plan to meet today after class. I'm interested to see what we talk about this time.