Eighth Conversation with Mehran

            Mehran and I met for the last time, and I can honestly say it felt a little bit odd. I cannot believe that we have already met eight times and that we would not be meeting after this conversation. Therefore, I wanted to make the most out of our final meeting.

            When Mehran first sat down, he seemed really stressed out. I asked him what was wrong, and he said that his day had been really busy because he had had a presentation and two tests; however, now he is now completely done with the international program at TCU. I had not realized that the program was already over, so I asked him what his plans were for next semester. Mehran told me that he planned to go to Texas Community College or TCC for two semesters because his English was not yet developed enough to come to TCU. I could tell that he was sad about leaving TCU because he absolutely loves it here; in fact, I think he might even love TCU more than I do. Mehran did mention, however, that he plans to return to TCU after attending TCC for two semesters in order to study finance. When I mentioned that I was most likely going to double major in finance and accounting, Mehran wanted to know what the business school was like. I told him that is was hard, but really rewarding because I have learned a lot in a short period of time. I sincerely hope that Mehran pursues finance because he is really brilliant and would excel in it.

            I then decided to ask Mehran what his plans were for the break. He told me that he is going to New York, Chicago, and San Jose; talk about a fun break! I asked him why he was going there, and it turns out he has cousins and friends in all of those places, which I think is absolutely incredible. I think it is so incredible because he is from Iran, and yet he already has so many connections in the United States. He is going to leave on December 20^th, and he will not get back to Texas until the second week in January. Needless to say I am super jealous because my break will consist of me being bored at my house.

            As our conversation drew to an end, neither one of us really knew how to say goodbye. In my opinion, goodbyes are really awkward. In the end, Mehran thanked me for meeting with him and told me that he really appreciated me helping him practice his English. However, I told him that I should be the one thanking him. Mehran was truly a great conversation partner because he always met with me, even if I had to schedule something last second. Mehran also was willing to share so many stories with me about his experience here, and it really offered a new perception on so many topics. 

Seventh Conversation with Mehran

            For Mehran and my seventh conversation I decided that we should meet again in 1873 since last week was so confusing. When I first arrived we exchanged the usual small talk conversations; for example, we asked each other how we were, how classes were going, and questions along those lines. I then asked Mehran what he ended up doing for Thanksgiving, and he replied that he was able to spend the holiday with his roommate’s family. I was really happy to hear this because he originally thought that he would spend the holiday alone. I then asked him if he enjoyed the food and he simply shrugged and said, “It was ok.” I could not believe that those words came out of his mouth. Personally, I think Thanksgiving is the best meal I have every year by far, and I have never heard anyone describe a Thanksgiving meal as just ok.

            Mehran then asked me if I knew what the word morsel meant, which I thought was a rather odd question. I told him that it meant something small; for example, the chocolate morsels that I use for baking. Mehran looked at me surprised and told me that I am the first person who he had asked besides his teacher that knew what morsel meant. This fact surprised me, so after our meeting I went up to one of my friends and asked her what the word morsel meant. To my surprise she had no idea what it meant.

            Our conversation about the word morsel then led into a discussion about grammar. Mehran asked me if I had been taught grammar in school, which I replied that I had in elementary, middle, and high school; by the time I had gotten to college my professors expected me to know grammar. He was curious then why his professor mentioned that many Americans did not know how to use proper grammar. I told him that even though many people learn proper grammar they fail to use it because it is not the way in which many Americans speak.

            Our conversation this week really revealed how observant Mehran is of the world around him. I also really enjoyed the conversation because it strayed away from our usual topics. The topics were both unique and insightful, and I cannot wait for our next meeting.