Conversation Partner Meeting #4

            This week, we received an email regarding a social held by IEP faculty and students. Needing to meet again with my conversation partner, I was ecstatic about the opportunity. Things got even better, though, when Dr. Williams offered extra credit to anyone who went. After that, my plans for Friday were finalized.

            The social ended up being even more fun than I thought it would be. From my class, I was one of the first students at the social. I quickly checked in with Dr. Williams, got my IEP shirt, and then started having a good time. I met up with my conversation partner Omar, and he introduced me to his friends. They were all from different countries, and all spoke very clear English. There was also a selection of food from different countries, though the majority of it was American. One thing I found interesting was that when pizza was brought in, there was a big deal made about whether or not there was pork in the pizza. It’s interesting to see how great a stir a food type can create in certain cultures. After everyone got their food, we all began to play games. People were playing Apples to Apples and other card games. After talking with my classmates and their conversation partners, I was soon roped into a game of spoons with about ten other people. I eventually lost about halfway through, but I had a great time. I was later talking with one of the faculty members, and we started talking about Omar. I found it interesting that she described him as a “reluctant leader.” I felt like it was fitting, and I really enjoyed watching Omar interact with the other IEP students. He was clearly one of the more popular guys, and he seemed to get along well with everyone.

            I eventually had to leave the social, but it was a great deal of fun. Seeing so many people come from all over the world to attend TCU made me so proud to call TCU my school. It also made me proud to be a student in Lit & Civ, as I actually got to meet the interesting people in the IEP. Interacting with Omar and the others is definitely one of the highlights of my college experience. I also learned how to play spoons, which was so much fun.

Conversation Partner Meeting #3

            After several missed meetings, Omar and I finally made our third meeting the week after Spring Break. Most of our time was spent discussing what we had been up to and what we had going on for the remainder of our school year. As the semester comes to a close, I realize now how much I am going to miss these opportunities to meet with Oscar. Oscar is more than just a conversation partner to me; he has become one of closest friends here at TCU.

            During his Spring Break, Omar spent most of his time in Houston visiting his family.  His parents and younger siblings traveled up from Venezuela to visit Omar and his older brother who also lives in the United States. Apparently, there are several cities in the United States where people from outside the country can come to renew their visa. Houston is one of these cities, and his older brother needed to have his visa renewed. I also learned that Omar’s parents intend to send his younger brother to the United States next fall to start high school. They feel that the education system in Venezuela is lacking and would like for his younger brother to be better integrated into American culture when he enters college. His younger brother will live with the people Omar currently stays with. His parents wish they could come to the United States, but they run an established cell phone distribution business in Venezuela that they don’t feel they can leave behind.

Omar also mentioned that he and several of the other IEP students had planned to do something fun together before the semester ended. What is Omar’s idea of something fun? Skydiving. He invited me to join them, but as somebody who is absolutely terrified of heights, I’m not sure I’ll be able to accompany them. Omar’s thirst for excitement and adventure is just part of what makes him such a fun conversation partner to have.