Conversation #4

For our fourth meeting, Nasrallah and I met up in Union Grounds, per usual. However, this time Nasrallah really wanted to take me out to lunch for our conversation. Obviously I agreed, considering any opportunity to get some food outside of the BLUU is an opportunity that cannot be passed up. Nasrallah always insists that he drives, which makes this occasion even sweeter. As we walked to his car, I asked Nasrallah where he wanted to go and he mentioned Terra Mediterranean Grill. Nasrallah told me that Terra has a few entree options that are similar to what he eats in Saudi Arabia. Thus, I was excited to eat there.

             The restaurant was buffet-style and had many options. Because Nasrallah is a regular at the restaurant, I had him point out what food I need to try. By the end of this process, I had 3 plates of food before me. And yes, I ate it all.

             For this meeting, I asked Nas if we could gear the conversation towards his religion. Nasrallah is Muslim, which means his religion is Islam. During the conversation, Nasrallah noted that many people do not understand what the words ‘Muslim’ and ‘Islam’ mean, along with the similarities and differences between the two. Basically, Islam is the religion and the word ‘Muslim’ is used to talk about an individual who follows the religion of Islam. As he talked about this, he seemed rather frustrated in American’s ignorance about this. Nasrallah then went on to describe some of his prayer ritual. As you may know, Muslims pray 5 times a day. Nasrallah completes this each day to the best of his ability.

             Through this conversation, I gained some more insight to who Nasrallah is as a person. I also gained a better sense of respect for followers of Islam. Growing up, I attended Catholic School my whole life, so I was never really exposed to different religions. It is a great experience being able to talk to someone about their religion and certain beliefs, especially with a Muslim. There seem to be so many stereotypes revolving around individuals of his religion, and it is only my wish that people would work to become more educated about the religion and more acquainted with the people who follow Islam.

             Before we left, Nasrallah invited me to a dance that was going on later that night in the BLUU ballroom. Unfortunately, I was not able to attend because of a Club meeting and Intramural game, but it was neat to see that Nasrallah really does enjoy his time spent with me and that he wants to hangout even outside of the conversation period. Nasrallah always thanks me for meeting with him, which is incredibly special considering I am the person who should be thanking him.    

Conversation #3

Setting up a time for our third meeting proved to be a difficult task. After multiple failed attempts and a few days of cancellation because of the ‘2015 Icepocalypse’, Nasrallah and I were finally able to meet after about 3 weeks of not seeing each other. After a little bit of catching up, I decided to gear this third conversation towards Nasrallah’s athletic and academic interests.

             When I asked what sports he likes, Nasrallah replied “My favorite sport to watch is futbol but I don’t like to play it”. Confused, I asked why he loves to watch the games but avoids participating. He then told me that when he was younger he broke his leg during a match. Ouch... I now understood. Nas then went on for a few minutes about how he doesn't understand Americans because we are the only people that call the sport soccer. I was completely amused by his animation towards this topic and agreed with his assertions. I then asked him if he attended any of the TCU football games in the fall.  Nasrallah responded with a “yes”, but then went on to tell me that he doesn’t really understand the game. He does not know any of the rules of American football and was confused the majority of the time. However, he loved the school’s spirit towards the football team and the overall atmosphere within the stadium. He plans on attending all of the homes games next fall. Finally, I asked Nasrallah if he was interested in any other sports. During his free time, Nasrallah enjoys playing billiards, swimming and bowling with his friends. He also conveyed his intent on playing basketball more often so that he can learn the game better and become better. After questioning him for a while, Nasrallah turned the questions towards me and asked me about my specific interests. I told him that I love playing pretty much every sport but my favorite was definitely soccer. Then, we made a plan to go to the recreation center sometime so I could help him learn how to play basketball.

             Academically, Nasrallah’s main focuses revolve around chemistry and space. His dream job would be with NASA, but for now he plans on finding a job that is hospital-related or similar to his previous job. Before coming to America, Nasrallah worked in Saudi Arabia for an American-based company, Baker Hughes. In Saudi Arabia, Nasrallah was an electrical and radioactive technician for just over a year. Baker Hughes is an oil drilling and manufacturing company and, interestingly enough, is headquartered in Houston, Texas. Nasrallah says that he would work for them again, if that’s what he ends up doing upon graduation from TCU. He has been in the intensive English program at TCU for 1.5 years now. He is also taking a Math course through the program and has another 3.5 years left before completion. Just like earlier, Nasrallah asked me questions pertaining to my specific academic interests.

             Through these first three meetings, I truly feel like Nasrallah and I are becoming real friends, not just people who meet for a class. In fact, we have had multiple encounters with each other just walking around campus and always greet one another and talk for a few minutes. I am learning more and more about Nasrallah and his interests each meeting and enjoying this assignment even more than I previously thought.

Conversation #2

             Nasrallah and I met for our second time one week after our original discussion. Our schedules only made way for about 30 minutes to talk so we decided to just grab a drink and hang out around Union Grounds. We both inquired about how each other’s weeks were going and what our plans were for the following week. After a few minutes of this introduction-type talk, I decided to gear the conversation towards Nasrallah’s family so that I could get to know some of his background better.

             Nasrallah is one of six children. He has two brothers and three sisters. Unfortunately, Nas also had a twin-brother that passed away in a car accident when he was just 12 years-old. I expressed my grievance towards Nasrallah and said I was extremely sorry to hear that.  He kind of shrugged it off and responded with a “Its life” comment. I was originally surprised by this acceptance attitude but that just shows his amazing strength in dealing with such a heartbreaking incident. As he continued to describe his family, he told me that there was something unique about a lot of families in Saudi Arabia. After a follow up question, Nasrallah told me that he has a couple dozen half-siblings. His Dad has multiple wives and even a few who he has divorced from. Obviously I was extremely intrigued about this and wanted to learn more about his culture and religion. However, I decided I would gear a future conversation towards these topics.

             One of the things I found most interesting during this second conversation was that Nasrallah is the first of his siblings to study in the United States. Thus, I asked him what brought him to the United States, and more specifically Texas, to attend school. Nas responded that his father had surgery about ten years ago and was brought to a hospital in Houston for a month or so. He did not make the trip overseas, however three of his siblings did. After hearing about their time in the states, Nasrallah knew that he wanted to come study here one day. Nas then told me that one of his cousins attended Texas Wesleyan University, which is nearby TCU. His cousin advised him to not attend Wesleyan, but instead persuaded him to look into Texas Christian University. He never visited TCU but decided to apply and, upon acceptance, enrolled in the University’s intensive English program.

             Because of the time crunch, Nasrallah and I ended our conversation there, but planned on meeting the following week.