Meeting Mohammed and Alia (ESL Blog #1)

Sitting in Barnes and Noble with my iced coffee, I waited anxiously for Mohammed and Alia to arrive. I’m not normally a nervous person, but this would be a new experience for me. Besides some simple math tutoring for little kids, I had never been on the teaching side of anything. Once I saw them walking through the doors, I waved them over with my sweaty palms. Easing my nerves, they both immediately shook my hand firmly with a huge smile on each of their faces as they introduced themselves.

When we began talking, I was shocked at their superb use of English for only being in the United States for four weeks. Mohammad began to tell me that he worked for the environmental protection agency of Saudi Arabia after receiving two PhDs. After working for a few years, he was given a three-year vacation! What a difference from the (maybe) one-week vacations Americans get from their jobs. Sitting close to him, Mohammad’s wife Alia is also exceptionally intelligent as she taught science classes to college students at home. I felt so intimidated comparing their extensive knowledge to mine!

Nervously attempting at conversation, I asked Alia if they had any family in the area. Immediately her eyes lit up as she told me about her 3 children, 8 siblings, and dozens of nieces and nephews. It was hard for her to comprehend that most Americans have small families because in Saudi Arabia everyone has at least 5 siblings. Something I found different about her use of English is that she rarely referred to herself. Nearly everything she talked about had to do with “others-centered” stories and events. I guess the “me-centered” language seems so normal to most Americans, but to her it probably seems very selfish. I will definitely want to ask her about their opinion on this subject once we get to know each other better.

Then we began talking about a favorite topic of mine: food. Mohammed told me that they have had the most trouble finding cuisine that they like to eat. I couldn’t help but be in shock when they asked me what “Tex-Mex” and “bagels” were. Shocked, I explained with an almost drooling mouth (maybe due to my lack of lunch) about two of my favorite foods. The couple began talking about their favorite types of cooking, but in a slightly different way than I expected. Instead of referring to their love of specific types of food (like I had done), Alia talked more about how she cherishes cooking for her big family and having time to enjoy each other’s company. This also intrigued me, especially seeing that food is a main staple of enjoyment for most Americans

Finishing up our conversation, I really began to realize the cultural differences the couple faces in being in a new country. Being used to collectivistic and family-oriented situations at all times, it must be very hard to adapt to being in an immensely individualistic society. I truly hope that I will be able to gain the ability to see my world from a more collectivistic viewpoint, and help my language reflect that. I’m also hoping that they will have something, whether small or large, to learn from me. No matter what, I’m more than excited to begin this journey into this new territory. 

Candide and Expectations

 My mom has always told me, “Where you find an open mind, you find an open door.”

Despite constantly hearing this advice, I read this story my sophomore year of high school (and receiving a terrible grade on my final paper may I add), I had a closed mind that I would find the same crushing despair I found then. Memories of Pangloss’ ridiculous optimism, Candide’s lack of any luck, and the exorbitant number of unrealistic close-call deaths left a sour taste in my mouth. I do appreciate my mom and her loving advice, but her optimism has always seemed to be, at least to me, more of the Pangloss-ian type.

Thus, when I began my reading journey it was definitely a rough commencement. I fought with myself and considered procrastinating until much later, but finally I had to conquer my fear of this novel.

Boy was I surprised. Oh how I easily forgot what 3 years of extra experience adds to one’s perspective.

I found this perspective when Candide and Cacambo reached the elusive country of El Dorado. This is a place that counteracts many of their previous impressions of their world. In this place, the children at the schoolyards play with gold, emeralds, and rubies as if they were mere toys. Candide attempted to pay for food with a couple of blocks of gold, which would be worth thousands in his world, but the people merely laughed at him. To them, he was throwing dirt on the table for payment. But yet, when they took some of this ‘dirt’ home with them, the pair could easily live off of what they had. Furthering their confusion they could not understand how neither a parliament nor prison existed, but a vast math and science gallery was nearly in its place. The narrative at this point makes it seem as if Candide’s head was about to explode.

What was this confusion from? Expectations. Candide and Cacambo had the expectation that these “precious jewels” would be respected and yearned after just like in their world. They had the expectation that everywhere in the world should have a place of punishment for those who do wrong, and not enough room for all of the intellectuals. On a side note, worst of all, Candide definitely had the expectation that Cunegonde would look just as beautiful as she did before he had to leave her. Luckily, when their expectations were shattered, they were able to learn and utilize this. They learned that not everything has innate value, like the gold. They learned that not everyone remains constant. I know I may be assigning lessons to the characters that are from the mind of Voltaire, but this is what the passage caused me to pause and think about.

To me, expectations are inevitable as human nature. I especially had the high expectations of being disappointed by this novel, but luckily these disintegrated once I began fully diving into the book. Honestly, surprises are my favorite part about reading books a second time; I love having the opportunity to see new things with new eyes. I do have to admit my mom was right: when I keep an open mind, I do have the opportunity to learn more than I ever expected.