4.2: Read

Luna and Violeta’s Story

A.

Luna slipped into the classroom five minutes after the start of class. She was usually early for class. Back at her university in Japan, she made sure to always arrive to class five minutes early, prepared and ready to listen to the lecture. She had a four point GPA . However, here, in the US, she felt uncomfortable and completely lost. She couldn’t sleep at night, which meant she had a hard time waking up in the morning. Everything in her life was affected by it. She was always forgetting homework assignments and arriving late to class. She forgot to study for a quiz in grammar class. She missed a required appointment with her instructor.

Luna was 20 years old. Her parents were extremely supportive . She only asked once, and they readily agreed that studying abroad for six months was an excellent idea. They even offered to pay all her expenses. They were excited for her to have this adventure. They believed in her.

As an introvert, Luna had a hard time reaching out to other people. In her two and a half weeks in the US, she hardly spoke more than twenty words to five people. She felt so lonely and insecure. She wanted a friend more than anything, but she didn’t have any idea how to get one. Everyone in her classes already had friends, and they didn’t appear interested in finding new ones. She didn’t feel confident enough about her English to just walk up to someone and start talking. Instead, she spent a lot of time alone. She Skyped with her friends back in Japan once in a while but not too often. It made her feel even lonelier.

Everything was so overwhelming to her. She didn’t have anyone to talk to in Portland. She didn’t feel like she could talk to her parents about this. Even though she talked to them once a week, she made sure the calls were short. She didn’t want to get too emotional and give them a reason to worry. She didn’t want them to know that she was having a hard time. She didn’t want them to worry about her. Mostly, though, she didn’t want them to think she was unsuccessful. She didn’t want them to regret supporting her. She didn’t want to disappoint them.

As Luna sat in her chair near the back of the classroom, Stephanie handed her a worksheet and smiled at her.

“Good morning, Luna! Today, we are going to work with partners on a problem solving activity. I have already selected and assigned partners. I’m pairing you up with Violeta. Have you met her yet?”

Luna shook her head. Her heart started to beat faster. She felt sick to her stomach. It didn’t matter how much she wanted a friend, she still felt anxious at the thought of talking to someone she didn’t know, especially in English. She often saw Violeta chatting and laughing with the other students. She always wished that she could join them, but she didn’t know how. Violeta seemed so nice, but that didn’t ease Luna’s anxiety. She took a deep breath and tried to calm her racing heart.

“Okay. Everyone sit with the partner I assigned you, and go through the questions on the handout. Make sure you really discuss your answers and try to think of some creative solutions together. When you finish discussing each problem, I want you to make a list of strategies for problem solving in general. We’ll combine all of our ideas to come up with a problem solving resource list that we can pass on to other students to help them problem solve too.”

Luna stared at her notebook. Should she move? Should she wait for Violeta to come to her? This was pure torture.

“Hi!”

Luna looked up and nodded. “H-hi,” she stammered.

“So, I’m Violeta. I’m from Mexico. I already know you are Luna. I really like your name. Did you know that luna means moon in Spanish? It’s a very beautiful name. My name means violet. That’s a flower. It’s also a color. What does your name mean in Japanese?”

Luna had a hard time following Violeta. She talked a mile a minute , but Luna couldn’t help but smile at her. She also wasn’t sure which question to answer first. “Um. No. I didn’t know that about my name. Thank you,” Luna practically whispered, but she felt so proud of herself. She was actually talking to someone, to Violeta, the most popular and outgoing woman in the class. “Um. My name is actually Runa. It also means something about the moon. I use the nickname Luna because it’s probably easier for people here to say. ”

“That’s awesome,” Violeta smiled.

Luna was starting to relax. This wasn’t so hard. She looked at the paper and started working with Violeta.

B.

“Okay, everybody, listen up. If you didn’t get a chance to finish, you’ll need to meet with your partner outside of class. Next time, I’ll have each pair share the best problem solving technique that they came up with.

Violeta’s eyes crinkled up when she smiled. “Luna, do you want to go across the street to PDX Café? We can finish this up and keep chatting. I’m dying for a latte.”

Luna loved the way Violeta talked. She was very extreme. “Sure. Let’s go!”

C.

After they finished their problem solving, Violeta asked Luna, “Why did you come to Portland to study?”

“My cousin studied here when he was in college. He had a very good experience. I just decided to try it too. It seemed easier to go someplace that my family already knew about.”

Violeta nodded. “That makes sense.”

Luna took a shallow breath. She wanted to keep the conversation going. “Um, so, what about you?”

“Well. I have been working for about ten years. I wanted a break, so I saved my money and came here to study. My brother lives here, so it was an easy choice.”

“Do you live with your brother?”

“Yes, and his wife, and their two kids.”

“That’s nice.”

“Well. Mostly. His kids are great. I kind of feel like his wife is not too happy that I’m living there for a while.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Oh, just little things. Molly always hides in her bedroom when I am there. She never wants to talk to me. She always whispers with my brother but won’t really interact with me. It makes me feel like maybe they are fighting about me. I might have to find a different place to stay.”

Luna was quiet, but she was thinking. “How long have you known her?”

Violeta thought for a moment, “Well, they have been married for about five years, but we met in person for the first time just a few weeks ago when I arrived.”

“Ahhh.”

“Luna, what are you thinking? I know you have an idea bouncing around in there.”

“Well. I just wondered if maybe she is shy. You know, like me. It, um, it takes a while for me to feel comfortable around other people.” She realized that she was whispering, and she self-consciously cleared her throat.

“I don’t know.” Violeta didn’t look convinced. “I guess she could be. What if she is?”

Luna felt confident. She knew about being shy. “If she is shy, it means she doesn’t dislike you. She just needs her space and maybe she needs you to, um, make the first step?”

Violeta nodded. “I’ll think about it.”

Before they parted ways, Violeta and Luna exchanged cell phone numbers. “I’ll text you tonight to let you know how it goes with my sister-in-law.”

“Okay, bye!”

Luna walked back to her dorm on a cloud. She didn’t feel lost anymore. She had a friend, a real friend. Maybe this would be good experience after all.

D.

Violeta walked into her brother and sister-in-law’s house right at six o’clock. She was tired. Two quizzes, one discussion group, and a long conversation with Luna over coffee—it was a long day. Violeta remembered what Luna said in the coffee shop. Maybe her sister-in-law, Molly, was just shy. Maybe she just didn’t like Violeta though. Violeta took a deep breath. She was good at confrontation . She was a businesswoman. She had to confront coworkers and clients all the time. It was no big deal. Of course, she didn’t have to live in the same house as her coworkers or employees. It was a little bit different.

Molly was pulling items out of the refrigerator. Mia, the two year old, was holding on to her leg and saying, “Up. Up. Up, Mommy!” over and over. Molly look exhausted and overwhelmed. She looked like she might start to cry any minute. Violeta noticed that her brother, Juan Carlos was sitting in the living room looking at his phone. He paid no attention to Molly’s situation. She was obviously trying to start dinner. She was still wearing her work clothes, so she must have just arrived home. Juan Carlos was already showered and changed out of his work clothes. He was a foreman for a very good construction company. He usually arrived home earlier than his wife.

Suddenly, the baby started crying. Baby Nathan was probably hungry, possibly cutting a new tooth. Juan Carlos called out, “Molly, the baby!”

If Juan Carlos was not staring at his phone, he would have seen the look of anger that both his wife and sister gave him at the same time. Violeta was shocked. Juan Carlos was not usually so inconsiderate. In fact, he often helped with the children and with the meals. Molly dumped all the food she had in her arms onto the counter and stomped out of the room. Violeta caught a glimpse of her tears as she fled.

“Juan Carlos! How could you be so inconsiderate! What are you doing?” Violeta slipped automatically into Spanish. She was much more comfortable speaking Spanish with her brother. She usually spoke English in the house, though, because Molly only spoke a little Spanish, and Violeta didn’t want her to feel left out.

“What? I just told her the baby was crying? What’s the big deal?” Juan Carlos replied in their native language.

“Molly was trying to start dinner. Mia was holding onto her leg, making it impossible. You are just sitting there! Are you on Facebook?” Violeta felt like she was in high school again. She felt immature for yelling at her brother, but she knew Molly wouldn’t say anything. She knew that she had to say something even if she wasn’t doing it right. She also knew how to hurt his feelings. “Mama would be ashamed of you.”

Juan Carlos set his phone down. You’re right. I was tired and being lazy. Violeta, will you start dinner? I’ll go talk to Molly.”

Wow. Violeta’s eyes opened wide. She was a bit surprised about this calm response from her brother. She was also proud. She might not have matured enough to not yell at him, but he had definitely grown up. A tear came to her eye. She quickly wiped it away and gave her brother a big hug. “Go. Go! Talk to your beautiful wife, and tell her you’re sorry! Take the baby. I’ll keep Mia out here with me.”

Violeta gathered up the food and started to make the most delicious dinner she could.

E.

“Did you get my message last night?”

“I did, but I didn’t understand it.”

“Guess what!”

Luna laughed. Violeta was always enthusiastic. “What? Tell me! I can’t guess.”

“Okay! I’ll tell you. Remember when you said that maybe Molly, my sister-in-law, might just be shy?”

Luna nodded her head.

“Well, I got home last night and everything was crazy. I yelled at my brother because he was just sitting there, and the baby was crying, and Molly was trying to make dinner. Then she started crying. It was a mess. After we all got calmed down, I just asked her how I could help out around the house. She was so nice. We made a schedule so that everyone will take turns cooking two nights a week so that she won’t be so stressed out.”

Luna smiled. Violeta was a great problem solver.

“Also,” Violeta continued, “It turns out that my brother never asked her what she thought about me staying with them. She wasn’t mad at me; she was mad at him. We had a long talk, it was really positive. I can’t believe my brother. He let me believe that he’d talked to her, and they had agreed together. Now, we are both mad at him.”

“Does he know?”

“Oh yes! He’s in the dog house.”

“In the what?”

“The dog house. Molly taught me. Isn’t it funny? It means he’s in big trouble.”

“Is he really in the dog house?”

“Well, no. We resolved the problems together by talking about everything after the kids went to bed. I think we are going to be okay. And I’m sure I don’t need to find a new place to live.”