The Adventures of Jude Simon

For our last meeting, Jude and I decided to go for a walk. The fall weather is absolutely gorgeous and we wanted to enjoy each other’s company doing something a little more active. I also really enjoy looking at the houses around TCU; they are absolutely gorgeous. I was able to share my opinions on the Fort Worth architecture and the houses that are my favorites. He could also share the appearance of the houses in Haiti. Some that we passed matched the ones from back home, and these were typically the ones made of wood. By walking and talking about the pretty yards and porch swings, I also gained insight on the society and economy of Haiti. Over and over he would state that Haiti “is a very poor country.” He did his best to notify me that there are some areas considered “rich,” but much of it is very poor being nothing in comparison to the view we were looking at. It is impossible for me to completely imagine his lifestyle back home, but I did my best.

            Passing the beautiful St. Stephen Presbyterian Church, our conversation quickly escalades into one of dating and marriage. I want to know all about the Haitian rituals for this process, so I begin to flood him with questions. He tells me of the importance to ask a woman’s father to even spend time with his daughter. This was a process he was not fond of, but I think gaining the fathers respect is necessary! He explained that it was a hassle to work up the nerve to talk to a girl’s father, even if he just wanted to hang out with her with a big group of friends. We debated this controversy a little bit- I think forcing a male to state his intentions upfront is a wonderful ritual. Once a male decides he wants to take a woman on a date, he must pursue her father with those intentions. The father will always be knowledgeable of where a man stands with his daughter. Being close with my father, receiving his blessing has upmost importance. Having my father’s approval at every stage of the dating process seems to be a great approach. In order to consider marriage, the male must be financially stable to support a family. If he is capable of doing so, the male’s family invites the female’s family over for a meal and this is the time he will ask her hand in marriage. After explaining to me these steps towards marriage, he backtracks and says, “Well, this is only for Christian relationships.”

            When talking to Jude, I constantly have to remember that being a Christian is the minority back in Haiti. In the United States, it is common for most people to state a Christian affiliation. Jude noticed this as well, and claims this is one of his favorite parts about Texas. He loves to see “Jesus” billboards and loves to freely talk about his religion with me and others. I contrast his love for the normality of Christianity, with the fact that although people claim to be Christian, their actions display differently. In Haiti, a Christian wakes up early for prayer, prays with the family before bed, dedicates his relationships to the Lord and more as he fulfills his duty towards the Lord. In the United States, one that claims he his Christian may have a relationship with the Lord, but does not display his actions in that regard. Christianity is prominent, but very diluted. After talking to Jude, I know I want to raise my family with traditional Christian values. Not values that are diluted, like the norm for America.

            Jude and I’s walk ended with him having to go to a bible study. I asked him how he liked it and he confessed that he typically just listens, not being confident enough in his English to give input. I told him he should feel much more confident! We are able to easily talk for an hour and he is constantly shining his light on me. I encouraged him to try to speak up and share his story, because it is one being worth told to as many people as possible!

            He also invited me to eat dinner with his family at some point. He wants me to try his Haitian food and get to know the most important people in his life! I cannot wait for this next adventure with Jude- hopefully his family is as easy going and as joyful as him!

A River Runs Through It

Spending the long weekend at my family’s ranch house, I really had time to reflect on a man’s interest in fishing. My brother, dad and even mom have this passion for fishing- something I do not understand. Growing up, I have always loved to hunt instead. I enjoyed spending this quality time with my dad and learning an infinite amount of information about the sport. In my family, hunting is a way of life. My brother, sister and I all know how to score a white tail deer, what signs to read from a deer’s body language, and how to shoot a gun. Unfortunately, being the oldest caused me to lose the “first deer” competition. I was seven years old when I had the privilege of two streaks of blood on my face (the universal sign of shooting ones first deer), my sister was six and my brother was only four. The most prominent memories of my childhood are set around either a camp fire or deer stands and are covered in camouflage.

When I try to explain this life to my girlfriends, their approval is impossible. Eyes widen at the idea that I have killed 30+ innocent animals and most cannot begin to grasp the idea that my family traveled all the way to Africa to take home the trophies of two warthogs, one eland, two red heartabeasts, two wildabeats, one impala, and one zebra (my kill). Before our discussion of a river runs through it, I could not even explain to myself my passion for the sport.

When Dr. Williams asked the question of the importance of fishing, my only explanation was, “It is just what boys like.” Creating the connection between fishing and religion was humorous in my mind. Religion is about God and faith, and fishing is nothing more than bait and a pole. This class discussion brought up the idea that fishing is a form of communication for men. And now, I agree that this generalization is spot on.

Men have trouble communicating as is. From my experience, I have concluded that they would rather be in physical pain then talk about their emotions. This is why men gravitate towards certain hobbies. A group of men fishing together are able to communicate by solely talking about the means of catching the biggest fish. Men sitting around a campfire can talk for hours about their best hunting stories. Emotions are never directly conveyed in these situations, but bonds are somehow still created. This contrasts to how a woman builds a friendship; instead, she must receive and input advice on emotional struggles. Saturday college football is able to create this manly relationship, as well. Placing bets on who is going to win and by how many points creates endless possibilities for conversation. All male fans of the same team have this connection that is only surface level from a woman’s point of view.

It is this communication factor that is most important in my love for the sport of deer hunting. Hunting is the way that I learn from my dad. Through hunting, I was able to learn about my father’s pasts and his mindset on all factors of life. Over time, my father and I have learned to communicate my way, too. He can share with me his opinions and the direction he desires my life to go. But this weekend, we went back to his communication structure. My family all pulled back our bows towards a central hay bell. Though our complete attention was on the object in front, we were sharing this passion and love between each other as well. I do not think anything could make my father more proud than watching all of his loves shattering clay pigeons with an arrow. 

In “A River Runs Through It,” the male form of communication was fishing. Words did not have to be said for the dad and his two sons to share their lives together. Now I can understand why men love to hunt, fish and watch football. Though not my primary form of communication, I can adjust to talk to all of the men in my life.

A Trinity River Reflection

Staring at the reflections of the clouds on the Trinity River, I begin to ponder all of the things that water has seen. The surface tension of water creates a smooth surface so that light can reflect off it. Large collections of water molecules are constantly creating an image. Though slightly distorted, this image is recreated from the water's viewpoint. Before the common use of mirrors, water was the source of seeing ones reflection. A passing stream or a lake still gives animals the opportunity to do this today. Even the color of our sky is blue because of the reflective properties of water. Large bodies of water have a completely different viewpoint than the human eye. Not even a bird’s eye view can compare to aerial picture that water is always seeing. Lakes, rivers and the ocean view the planes, birds, bugs, and clouds as they fly overhead.

Trying to be very observant and really take in my surroundings, the next thing I notice is the sound of Latino music playing to the left of me. I look over to find many large tents and tons of people gathered about the pavilion near by. It takes me a little while to realize that this is the cause of the parking fee that I had to avoid when finding my blogging destination. As I get an idea of what is going on, I conclude that some sort of Mexican festival is occurring. Desiring to know the cause of all the ruckus and excitement, I use the Internet to fill me in on the fact that September 16^th is Independence Day for Mexico! Being the 14^th of September, the event must be held for this purpose. Again, the Trinity River amazes me. It is in an important asset to people all over Texas, and now even beyond. The Trinity River is allowing people to celebrate and connect back to their native land and ancestors in Mexico.

With the view of the courthouse behind the river, I cannot help to think of the history of Fort Worth and the importance of the river. It is no coincidence that this section of the river backs up into the edgings of the city! The river gives Fort Worth a multitude of resources and can even be considered the primary reason for the location of Fort Worth. This river provides the city with drinking water, natural habitat, sewage filtration, flood prevention, and recreational opportunities (like the canoes in front of me, my yoga experience, hiking, bike riding, and even bird watching). Without all of the opportunities that this river provides, Fort Worth would be without necessities that allow the city to thrive.

Obviously, becoming really deep in thought about this beautiful body of water in front of me, I started to question the name Trinity river. How did this name arise? Possibly a reference to Christianity? The Trinity being the Father, Son and Holy Ghost? Again, I take the questions to my smart phone and come to learn a little bit more for the day. I learn that the river began with a multitude of names from different identifications such as Arkikosa by the Indians, River of the Canoes by a French explorer and La Santisima Trinidad by a Spanish explorer. The translation of this is the “Most Holy Trinity”, where the name Trinity River is derived. “La Santisima Trinidad” comes from the discovery occurring two days before the Feast of the Most Holy Trinity, it being common for the time to name a landmark after a religious feast or holy day.

Who would of thought I would have learned so much in a short amount of time of thought reflection about the Trinity River. Definitely not me!

Laughing All The Way

I cannot help giggling and smiling to myself as I reflect back on my conversation with Jude early today. Our conversation was all over the place, but nonetheless it was a great one!! I do not think we will ever run out of things to say and jokes to make. He is an absolutely blessing in my life, for it is impossible to not be happy around him. His smiles is a contagious one that is so big that he has to squint his eyes- the same one that I make when I am completely overjoyed. I feel that we were both making this face for the full hour, making fun of each other, the language barrier, common mistakes or just life in general. Honestly, it would be impossible to discuss our entire conversation in a short blog, so only the most significant factors are highlighted below.

Ironically enough I had just professed my love of love to my blog yesterday, and today a discussion of relationships were the most prominent part of my conversation. We were talking about Jude’s future and what he planned to do after TCU. Going back to Haiti is a definitely option, with most of the reason being his desire to date and find a wife. Being fairly dependent on relationships myself, I completely understood. With Jude being someone who desires this companionship, being completely content in the states is nearly possible. He began to tell me that one great reason for wanting to travel back home was for his first love, Rebecca. He discussed his love for her and how much he adored that she truly appreciated “his value”- very different from other women. In Haiti, it protocol for a man to have money and physical strength to find a spouse. Although he did have this love for her, he felt the Lord hinting she was not the one. Personally, I could completely relate to this, as I struggled with the Lord’s plan for my relationship all last year. We went on with discussing how it was necessary for him to go home to find a spouse, with her being Rebecca or not. He does love all of the beautiful women her in Texas, but being able to woe her in his own language is a must. He understands the importance of conversation in a relationship, and feels that he cannot fully express himself by using a language he moderately understands. This was a crisis I had yet to think of! Obviously wanted this new friend of mine to stay in the safety of the United States, I tried to prompt him that maybe his future is here. Unfortunately, I now understand the odds of finding her here is very slim because of his desire to not have a language barrier. The thought of crossing languages made us both laugh hysterically. We could not stop making jokes about him trying to pursue his lady and her surprised looks when he said something completely irrational. This is a common problem in crossing languages because certain phrases have different meanings across cultures. Word translations do not necessarily mean a valid translation of ideas. For example, Jude also brought up the fact that my use of the word “girlfriend” completely caught him off guard last week. Deciding not to question me, he discussed his confusion with his cousin once he got home. Only then did he understand that some phrases must be taken more literally as “girl” that’s a “friend”.

Another part of our discussion that ironically occurred was definitely in the Lord’s hands. He began to talk about his common interactions with other international students from Saudi Arabia. He started to talk about their faith and how different it was, and this caused him to be intrigued and learn through outside research. I asked him how he spoke of his faith in these situations and told him of a situation that had just happened this past Sunday. I would definitely title myself as a strong Christian, but spreading the word is easier said than done. Spending time with my sorority sisters last Sunday, my friend was complaining about not filling completely filled, but instead feeling that she is in a slump. My heart and faith desired me to invite her to church and share my confidence that the only way to filled is spiritual, but my human desires did not want to take the chance of rejection. Shortly after, she began talking about her Jewish religious activities of the weekend. This took me off guard and I definitely had nothing to say at that point. Jude and I discussed this, both being fearful of the rejection of our close friends. It was nice to hear him agree that it is hard to share Christ under some circumstances. He told me that very soon he will be doing a speech presentation on Jesus as a spiritual leader and this is going to be his doorway to let his peers know more about his religion!

I truly could go on and on about Jude and I’s conversation. I am amazed by how prominent the Lord is in each of our lives, especially by putting us together! We also discussed how unbelievable all of our similarities are, although our upbringings are so different. Our views of relationship, religion, morals and even sense of humor is almost identical. How can this be with our cultures, language, past and families being so different? This question is still not answered, but I do know that I cannot wait for the crazy conversations we will have next week!!

All's Fair in Love and Water

Sitting at the lunch table my freshman year of high school, my bests friends began to point out the fact that I was a hopeless romantic. My spirits were absolutely crushed; who wants to be considered hopeless? After doing a little more research, I realized this title unfortunately fits me perfectly. “Believes in fairytales”- check. “Constantly looking for that one person who will complete my needs”- check. “Would rather give than receive”- check. “In love with… love”- CHECK. The common definitions of hopeless romantic hit me to a T back then, just as they do now. I also came to the conclusion that “hopeless romantic” is centered on the word hope. For it is this great hope in love that keeps us “hopeless romantics” going, but I suppose the pessimistic outsiders feel our long lists of a “perfect relationship” as hopeless.

Before this course, I had yet to realize the huge connection between water and romance. I, like many other people as Fishman points out, would often take water for granted. Seeing the picture of the water gardens, instantly made me think of my parents and their great love. Although I have never been to the water gardens, I have heard the stories time and time again. One could say the water gardens are a staple location to where my family began. This is where my father professed his love to my mother for the first time, and then proposed to her a year later.  As usual, my mind began to wonder onto the idea of love, its importance, and where it will eventually take me. This time it was a little different; I began to think of how important water is in the greatest loves stories and love today.

Beginning with the fiction pieces, I soon realized that water is present everywhere. One of the greatest love stories of all time, the Titantic, is told completely surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean. Without this large body of water and the glacier (frozen water), this love story would be nonexistent. So many women dream of “the titanic scene”, of Rose being held by Jack leaning over the gorgeous ocean. In this picture, water is just a background, but its beauty enhances the romance of the scene. Another famous water scene takes place in none other than the Notebook. Noah takes Allie to see the swans in a small boat. The water sets the scene as tall trees and swans envelope them. A few minutes later, a storm comes in rinsing the two with water. It is because of their soaking wet bodies that their passion for each other is reborn. Water is even present in childhood loves stories such as The Little Mermaid and the nursery rhyme that begins “Jack and Jill went up a hill to fetch a pail of water”. And in modern music, like Taylor Swift’s lyric “kiss me in the pouring rain” or Josh Abbot’s song “Hot Water”. In both of these cases, water is utilized to enhance the romance.

Just as music in a movie adds to a scene’s mood, water does the same in so many dreamy experiences. Think of all of the proposals, weddings and even hook-ups that occur on sandy beaches, the location where water meets land. The fact that beaches are romantic is undeniable. Maybe it is because of the beautiful landscape that they will always ease the mood, maybe its their common affiliation with vacationing that causes tourists to desire a lover or possibly the skimpy attire usually worn at a beach! Showers and baths are no exception to the presence of water enriching a passionate situation. And one cannot forget one of the oldest scenes in the book- fogging the windows of a back seat of a car. What is this fog made of? Water.

This semester, I think I will be learning more and more about the presence of water in my every day life. It seems to exist everywhere from my shower, to my classes and even my love life. Who knows the exact reason for human nature to think of water so romantically? My explanations are endless including the calm ripples of the water, the beautiful reflection it creates, or the hot, humidity of water in the air that just causes people to desire one another.