Cultural Diversity

At the end of my 2nd interview for my current position, I was asked what I thought about working in a school district where over 30 languages were spoken. I could hardly wait for them to finish asking the question because I was quite excited at the prospect of living in a more culturally diverse setting. I noticed small things as soon as I arrived: the Indian and Thai restaurants, the Bosnian bakery, the varying shades of black, brown and white skin tones at the grocery store. Once I started work I began to interact with students and adults with varying life experiences and I throughly enjoy it.

Last week one of my co-workers received referrals for two children in a French speaking family. It was great fun to go with an early child educator into their home and translate. I was slightly disappointed when it turned out the kids were doing great and just need to get into preschool. That meant I wouldn't get to go back. The whole experience brought back to mind the visits in the homes of my friends in France.

Tuesday evening I met "Fatima" a student from the Middle East who is here studying English at UNI. The program she is in seeks to match up students with local families. On Saturday I went with her, a cousin and two other international students to the National Cattle Congress in Waterloo. It it turned out to be like a fair that is heavy on the livestock and light on all other types of displays. As we entered the first barn, I looked around and Fatima was nowhere to be seen. It turns out she is quite afraid of animals. It was easier for her to walk into the barns where the animals were in pens than the ones where the back of the stalls were open. With some encouragement she was happy to look from a distance. The other two students from Malaysia were eager to pet the llamas and rabbits. When we walked by the goats, Fatima told me of a vivid memory of buying a goat with her father and crying with great fear as only a 5 year old can when he put it in the back of the car to take home. It all made me smile, and she was a good sport. As we left I told her she now had something to write home about. She was puzzled but after I explained, she said she had already sent pictures on snapchat. She told me she had a great time, and I'll take her word for it, though I can't help but wonder if she was telling me that just to make me feel good. I would love to hear what she told her brother and cousin who are also here. Next time we'll do something that doesn't involve animals.