Three Young Women

Yesterday we had a fun 'carne asada' (BBQ) at our house and a bunch of Pocho's co-workers came. We had many 'paisanos' (people from the same country as Pocho, paisano just means fellow countryman) and a few others like me. It was wonderful to feel the warmth of a full house and see everyone laughing. At first it was a little hard to find people to talk to myself (although everyone was very nice) but then I began conversation with three young women (daughters of one of the co-workers). The three of them together embody most of my interests.

The eldest, Daniela a sophomore in highschool this year, loves languages. She's fluent in Spanish and English and has studied some German, currently she's studying French. She also loves to dance and listen to music. The middle daughter Brenda, a freshman, is an avid reader. Although English is her second language she has already read Pride and Prejudice! Even before she came to the States (her mother and sisters confessed to me), she was most likely to hide a book she was reading within her notebook she was supposed to be studying from. I remember the trick well. She is also musical and plays the electric guitar. The youngest of all, Melanie, plays the clarinet (I think that's what she said) and is interested in writing stories.

How fun to spend an evening talking about culture shock and all of my interests with three fascinating young women. And I've also discovered that their mother loves to dance! So perhaps I will get her to go dancing with me sometime.

To end a nice evening and thanks to my father-in-law, I woke up to a clean kitchen. Before I was awake the next morning all the dishes were done! Thank you Gonzalo.