Final meeting

Janaina and I's last meeting of the semester was short and sweet. She was gearing up for her first Texan (and American) Christmas with her family, and I was counting down the days until my last final, so we met just briefly to chat.

This semester has gone by in a whirlwind, and our first conversation seems like just yesterday. We both have grown the last few months, Janaina in her English me in my appreciation for other cultures and languages. Never did I think I would ever have a chance to participate in something like this here at TCU. These "required" conversations have been a welcome break from my science labs.

We talked about school and my upcoming finals, as well as her family, an always popular topic of conversation for Janaina. Her kids are finishing up with school also, and excited to spend their first Christmas here, even though they still often miss Brazil. I cannot imagine picking up and moving to a whole other country and culture as a teenager. Growing up is hard enough, but doing so in a foreign place with a foreign language must be a crazy experience. Just moving from California to Texas was difficult for me.

While I hope to see Janaina again next semester, with our different lifestyles and busy schedules I am not certain it will be easy to do. Even if I do not get to sit down for coffee or lunch ever again with Janaina, I will always remember this experience. We participate in this program to gain global awareness credit, and while I already have this credit from studying abroad this summer, I still learned so much through this portion of the class. I learned to appreciate those who work to learn our language so much more, because it is not easy. I learned about Janaina's Brazilian culture and the differences between it and our American culture. Overall this semester in Literature and Civilization II has been a memorable one, largely because of the conversation partner program. If it were possible, I think all global awareness credit courses at TCU should do this.

This final conversation blog is also my last blog for this course, and I have thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it. Blogging has been a great way to write about what we're learning in and out of class, and it has been so fascinating to see what everyone has learned this semester. Merry Christmas everyone, and thanks for a great semester!

Coffee and Conversation

Last week I met with my conversation partner, Janaina, for coffee at union grounds. I was knee-deep in studying for finals, so it was nice to take a much-needed caffeine break and relax with her. We talked about how our weeks had been, and I found out she was in the middle of her finals. She seemed quite stressed about them, while I was stressed about the anticipation of my finals to come.

During this meeting, Janaina wanted to get to more about me, as usually we are talking about her and her Brazilian culture. We've talked about my home in California but not really about my life here in Texas. I talked about how I'm preparing to start my nursing clinicals next semester, and I explained what exactly that meant. She was just as excited as I was about getting to work in an actual hospital. Janaina remarked that she could tell I would do great just by seeing the happiness in my face when I talk about nursing, something that really warmed my heart to hear.

Janaina is much older than me, almost the same age as my mom, so our experience has been quite different from some of the other conversation partners, but what I have grown to love so much is how encouraging she is to me. She is the one studying an entire new language and culture, but always loves to hear about my own nursing studies and what my classes and labs are like. Her children are so lucky to have such a happy and strong mother.

With all the craziness surrounding football lately, I asked her if she went to any of the games this season. She hadn't, mostly because football is still a foreign idea to her. I explained how electric the stadium gets on game day and how well our football team did this year. TCU sports are so much fun to watch, so I encouraged her to take her kids to a horned frog basketball or baseball game this year. Just remember to wear purple!!

Our relaxed conversation was just the break I needed from all the craziness of preparing for finals, I am so glad I got to share some more time with Janaina (and that it came with more coffee).

Weather changes and Reflecting on the Trinity

I visited the Trinity River briefly before Thanksgiving break to explore and reflect. It was a beautiful, sunny day at the river, with perfect weather begging me to relax and bask in the sun. I walked along the river and eventually walked out on the rocks in the middle of the water. Standing on the large rocks in the middle of the quiet, simple beauty of the Trinity was extremely relaxing and surprisingly enjoyable. The sun was bright and shining on me as I let go of our stress for a few minutes to sit back and enjoy the little taste of nature. When I had to unfortunately leave to get back in time for class, I told myself that I should definitely come back soon 

I returned to the Trinity in December ready to have the same experience that I had before. It was a completely different day however. The weather had begun to finally accept that it is winter and the clouds had covered the sun when I arrived. There was a slight wind and and outside was just an overall gloomier environment. I walked down to the rocks again and sat down on them at the center of the river. The weather change meant the rocks were no longer warm to the touch and as comfortable to lay down on. It was still peaceful to sit there, but in a different way. The cold air was invigorating and I left feeling refreshed and rejuvenated, but not quite as happy as I left the other day.

It was amazing how the weather change impacted my experiences on the Trinity. The different weather gave me completely different feelings while I sat by the river. The sunny day made me feel tranquil and put my mind at ease. The colder day rejuvenated my body and gave me energy to push through the next few weeks. In true Texas fashion the weather changed rapidly, and with it my experience with the Trinity River. I'm glad I chose to visit on these two different days, otherwise I would have only gotten one feeling reflecting on the river. I never really considered just how much weather can impact our experiences and change how we view a place and experience.

During my trips to the Trinity I had time to simply sit down, be quiet, and think. No distractions but the sound of water falling over the rocks. In college these kind of moments are few and far between. We are constantly with someone, talking about something, or on your way to the next class or meeting. Forcing myself to make time to go the river both of these days was more beneficial for my mind than I ever could have thought. As cliche as it sounds, reflecting on the Trinity gave me time to myself to sort through the many things currently on my mind. From lab finals to final presentations these last few and next few weeks are packed to the brim with things that somehow must all get finished. This time of year it is especially hard to make yourself stop and take a break from it all, and having to go the river gave me this break. Leaving campus just for an hour gave me a chance to back away from everything before jumping right back in with a clearer head.

I am looking forward to more trips to the Trinity whenever I feel the need to get away and calm my mind down. As the semester winds down I will not forget the feeling the river gave me, and now I can match the weather to whatever I am looking to get out of the visit. Next May you might just find me back by the river trying my best to take a break from finals once again.

Lunch with Janaina

Recently I met with my conversation partner Janaina again for lunch. It was so nice to catch up with her on how her semester has been. She spoke very excitedly about how much she was learning about the English language, and on how much more difficult it was to learn than she had expected. Raising a family and living outside of Fort Worth makes it often hard to find enough time to get all the work done. I am amazed at how much her control of the language has improved just over this semester. Her writing skills have also rapidly improved, which I have noticed from her emails. English is so difficult to learn and I applaud all of her work to conquer it.

At lunch we just talked about life and school. Janaina was very interested in both this class and my nursing classes and how the nursing school worked. She is always interested in my life at TCU and how my week has been going whenever we meet, and this time was no different. We talked about what I did for Thanksgiving and about my home in California. She remarked that she has never been to the west coast but its on her list of places to visit soon. I insisted that she has to go to San Francisco when she does go, because it is one of my favorite cities in the entire world. Listening to me talk about California Janaina asked why I decided to leave and if I ever will move back. Whether I will go back is the million dollar question with my family, and honestly I have no idea.

Janaina and her family will be staying in Texas for the holidays this year and it will be their first Christmas in America. She explained some of her favorite holiday traditions and shared some of mine. Some of them were actually pretty similar, although her family's holiday food sounds much more exciting! I can't wait to hear how their Texas Christmas goes and how it compares to their Christmases in Brazil.

Our conversations are unfortunately usually brief because of our extremely busy and differing schedules, but the little time that Janaina and I do get to have together are always thoroughly enjoyable. I look forward to many more to come.

Conversations with Janaina

Being able to meet with my conversation partner Janaina these last few months has been a very gratifying and unique experience. I've never before stopped to think about how the majority of the world chooses to learn English as their second language and how difficult the learning process can be. We are so lucky to have been raised in America and grow up speaking English. Traveling around Europe I have noticed that most people speak at least a little English or are trying to learn. Think about how different it is here in the US. Yes, we have mandatory foreign language classes that we took in high school and maybe college but if they weren't required would we actually pursue another language? We have accepted that the rest of the world will learn English and it is therefore not as important for us to learn their languages.

In our emerging global society, language still serves as a barrier to communication, business, and learning. The students in the IEP program here at TCU are studying to bridge this language gap, and it has motivated me to want to learn parts of their languages, as my major does not have a foreign language requirement. It is easy to become hyper-focused on our own world here in Texas, and talking with Janaina about her home and family in Brazil has given me a broader world view and allowed me to explore and learn about a place I have never been to.

 Janaina has been so kind, opening up about her family and children and how they are adapting to American (and Texan) life. I can't even imagine moving to another country and barely knowing the native language. Her drive to learn English and learn about our culture is surprisingly motivating and has given me a new found appreciation for our unique American culture as well as her Brazilian culture.

The TCU mission statement is "to educate individuals to think and act as ethical leaders and responsible citizens in the global community", and this experience has emphasized this mission more than any of my other classes this semester. Talking with Janaina has taught me just how difficult learning English can be for immigrants and foreigners abroad, and I've learned how important it is to be patient throughout their English learning. The next time I am abroad I will have a new appreciation for every foreigner who has learned my native language and who has given us the ability to communicate. This has truly taught me what it means to be a responsible citizen in the global community, because it has taught me how to appreciate language as a barrier and a route to learning about new cultures and parts of the world.

The Old Man and the Sea

The Old Man and the Sea has many themes and conflicts throughout, but one of the things that stood out to me was Santiago's relationship with the sea and sea life. The old man personifies the ocean with the ways he talks to and about it. Santiago refers to the ocean as a woman when he says that "she is kind and very beautiful". He thinks of the sea as "la mar", as that is how the Spanish who love it refer to it as. Calling the sea "la mar" leads the reader to picture the sea as a feminine, strong spirit. Throughout Santiago's journey on the ocean, he is constantly talking to the ocean in a way someone would speak to a respected friend. Santiago recognizes the ocean's power and influence in his life. Sailing his skiff through the sea is not something he takes lightly, and he sees that the ocean has a mind of its own.

The old man truly appreciates the sea and its inhabitants both as his family and as powerful forces of nature. Through his journey he allows himself to become one with the sea and accepts its good and bad attributes. Santiago truly loves the ocean and sees it as a part of his soul. While he has a loving relationship with his apprentice Manolin, his relationship with the sea is what caught my attention. When Santiago is all alone on his boat, he has nothing but the sea and the animals to keep him company, and so his connections with both become much deeper.

Santiago becomes extremely attached to the marlin over the many days at sea. At times he feels deep sorrow for killing him, and wonders if he really should be a fisherman. Santiago refers to all of the fish in the sea as his brothers. He also ponders whether anyone is truly worthy of eating this fish that he now refers to as his friend. The whole journey back the old man is talking to the marlin, at one point telling him that he will fight away the sharks so that this whole ordeal was not "for nothing".

The relationship Hemingway creates between man and water is similar to other things we have read this semester. The protagonists in The River Why and A River Runs Through It both saw the river in the same way that Santiago views the sea. This loving and respecting relationship with water is a common theme found in our readings and learning.

I really enjoyed reading this novel, perhaps because I felt that there was not as much hidden "underwater" as there was in some of Hemingway's other stories. The novella was slow and at first read not very exciting, but after diving deeper into it both on my own and in our class discussion I found myself more appreciative of its unique style.

Fort Worth Water Gardens

Arguably the best part of this entire course has been the opportunities to go on field trips around Fort Worth to explore water in different ways. From canoeing on the trinity to touring the Amon G. Carter art museum, these hands on experiences have made me grow to truly love this class. One of our most recent trips to the Fort Worth Water Gardens was particularly interesting. I had never actually visited the gardens, and I had no idea that they were hidden right in the middle of downtown Fort Worth. I also had no idea what to expect, because what exactly is a "water garden"? Many definitions of water gardens describe them as gardens of aquatic plants, but that is not the case in Fort Worth. The water gardens we visited were focused primarily on the water, not on any aquatic wildlife.

One of my favorite water features was the active pool that has gallons of water cascading down large steps into a small pool. We were able to walk down into the middle of the pool and take in the rushing water. It was a complete visual and auditory experience, taking in the entire water feature from the center of it. The active pool used water's power and sensory beauty to create a breathtaking show.

Some chose to sit and observe the active pool for most of the time, but we chose to explore what the gardens had to offer. Just past the active pool was the aerating pool, a  large pool indented into the ground with water spraying up creating an illuminating and refreshing experience. If you caught the right light, all of the different water sprays created a beautiful rainbow. The aerating pool was incredibly serene and peaceful, portraying the beauty of water in a different way than the active pool did. Some of the pictures we took of the aerating pool turned out simply breathtaking because of the way the water caught the late afternoon sunshine.

Our final stop on our exploration was climbing up the "mountain" to look over all the water gardens and even see outside to parts of the city. The mountain was obviously not a water feature, but climbing to the top did give us a birds eye view of some of the other features, once again offering just another perspective to looking at water.

The water gardens serve as an oasis in the middle of bustling city. Tall buildings loom over the gardens, yet the large oak trees provide enough cover to make you really feel transported somewhere else. The gardens are an extremely peaceful place to visit and make you stop and take in the beauty of water. These field trips are a great addition to this class, even if sometimes because they're just a great excuse to explore our city. You can read about something as much as you want in class, but actually canoeing on, walking around, or observing water will always be the more rewarding activity.