Round Five with Aitana

On the Sunday before finals week, I met with Aitana once again. The entire student body was awaiting an announcement of cancelled finals due to inclement weather. Aitana and I chatted about the stress of finals. I asked her when she would be finished.

“I finished on Friday!” Aitana declared. I couldn’t help but be jealous. Aitana told me she was glad to be done but now she had nothing to do. Over winter break she’s going to Peru with her stepsister to visit their father. Her stepsister, who also attends TCU, won’t be done with finals until Friday. Aitana said that she’s been very bored the last few days. She asked me about my finals. I explained to her that I only had two actual tests on Monday and then three final papers. Aitana wanted to know how long the papers had to be.

“The longest one is eight pages,” I said.

“Eighty pages?!”

I had to clarify the length requirements by using my fingers to show her how many pages. Listening in English sometimes still troubles Aitana, and honestly it stills gets me too even though I’ve been speaking the language my entire life. I think it gets difficult when people talk quickly, especially if you’re learning the language. Overall though, Aitana has made great improvements in her speaking abilities – I can’t believe she only started speaking English in August! That just shows the merits of an intensive language program like the one at TCU. Living in an English speaking country and surrounding yourself with only those who speak the language forces you to learn quickly.

We talked about the icy weather once again. I told her how hard it’s been to stay focused on studying when the temptation to play in the snow keeps lingering. After telling her about my sledding experience inside Amon G. Carter Stadium (so much fun but probably illegal!), I asked her if she had been enjoying the weather. Aitana said she hasn’t wanted to go outside and sled or play in the snow. She’s not a fan of winter weather and can’t wait for the ice to melt. I agreed with her – I don’t like the cold much either. I jealous that she gets to escape to warm Peru for the break! Aitana told me about some girls she saw taking pictures in the snow. They were only wearing bikinis! We both agreed they were insane. I said that my cousins from Minnesota would probably do that since they’re used to temperatures below zero. Aitana thought I said my cousins from Mexico and asked if I spoke Spanish with them – another example of the troubles of listening to the English language!

She asked me how studying was going. I told her I had been in the BLUU all day. She couldn’t believe it. She wondered how I didn’t get distracted by all the people and the noise. I said that it had been pretty quiet all day long – which is necessary for me to stay focused. I asked her where she liked to study. Aitana said that she liked to study in her room. She hated going to the library because it was way too quiet. She felt like if she made the tiniest noise everyone would turn and look at her. I also mentioned how I’d had almost four cups of coffee that day – she was astonished. She said she never drinks coffee. She can’t even stand the smell of it! I told her that I would most likely cease to live if I didn’t have my daily dose of coffee. I get caffeine headaches whenever I don’t have a cup!

I can’t believe I only have one more meeting with Aitana this semester. Time passed almost too quickly!