Conversation Partner 2

Recently, I got to meet up with Hussain for the second, and highly anticipated, time. Once again Hussain wanted to meet in the Recreation Center at 2 o’clock on Wednesday at a specific table. Side Note, if there is one word that exemplifies the way Hussain thinks, its consistency. Walking up to meet him I had a severe feeling of Déjà vu. Not only was he studying the same book facing the same direction but he also was dressed in exactly the same clothes. Now, it is most likely an immense coincidence but these details were too funny not to notice (Plus it serves to make my post more dramatic J ) ( I also just learned that you are able to use smiley faces in blog posts)

Thinking this was as good a place to start as any, I decided to ask him about it. Laughing it off, he mentioned that he honestly hadn’t thought about it. Content with his answer, I approached the next most pressing question, “So… crazy weather huh?” Needless to say this struck a chord. Without warning, Hussain launched into a flurry of not so pleasant complaints about Texas weather. As he put it, “One moment it’s too hot, the next it is too cold! Why doesn’t it make up its mind?” Nodding in solemn agreement, I continued to complain about Texas’ hyperactive weather.

This was the “tipping point.” I know it sounds ridiculous and improbable but my one comment about the weather was the first time Hussain and I seemed to connect. Now I don’t mean that we were destined to meet or anything like that, but talking about the weather was the first true step we had taken to understand one another. In a way, our small talk led to a big change.

Moving past the small talk, we went on to discuss his county, Saudi Arabia, further. He mentioned that the population of his country was very young. The recent growth in Saudi Arabia, fueled by the massive oil wells found along the coasts, has led to an influx of Arabian immigrants. Unfortunately, there is really no other industry in Saudi Arabia other than oil, which is in itself highly automated and requires extensive training from its workers. In order to accommodate these new citizens and provide them with jobs, the Saudi government has expanded immensely. Hussain guessed that nearly half the total industry in his country is government owned and operated.

He went on to talk about how much he envies America for its more open style of government. In fact, I found myself attacking the US, while he attempted to defend it! This was an odd role reversal and made me reconsider my views on the US government. I am not saying that I should discount what I disagree with in our government, but I should appreciate the positive things within our government more.

After a few more minutes of talking, we decided to split up and meet again sometime this week.