Drivng Perspectives

            Driving is something I probably take for granted. When it was time for me to drive, I definitely just “followed the plan.” When I was 15 I took Driver’s Education and practiced with my parents. When I was 16, I exchanged my Driver’s Permit for a Driver’s License, and the car search began. I search for a used car that was not only inexpensive but also would last me at the very least (I know I used the dreaded “very,” but it’s part of the expression; it can’t be helped) through college. Also, the vehicle should have satisfactory looks. At 18, restrictions were removed from my driving. I now come and go as I please. I put gas in my car, take it for routine oil changes and tire rotations, and sing to it if I like the song on the radio. Yes, Jesse (my car) and I get along quite well.

            It’s so different for International students like Yangyi (Keith) Since coming here, and while already studying as part of the International English Program, Yangyi has taken and passed the tests to get a Driver’s Permit. He has been really excited about it. At our meeting this past week, he asked me where the place was to get your Driver’s License. After blanking on the acronym for the shortest moment, I attempted to explain directions to the DMV off of Altamesa and McCart. With the help of Google Maps I pointed it out. Apparently he has one more part of his driving test to do before he can get his license, and he needs to do it at the DMV. I warned him of all of the stereotypes about the DMV, including the process and the workers. I warned to bring a good book because it may take a while. He thanked me for everything.

            The way he has to look at purchasing a car is quite different from the mindset I need. He explained that he only needs the car to last him 3 or 4 years, but that he should be able to sell it for a lot at the end of that time. So he is looking for even lower priced cars than I did perhaps, because it need only last 3 years for the occasional drive into Dallas or some other nearby town for dinner or some recreational activity with friends. He doesn’t really have much of a preference for color or style, because for the amount of time/use he expects out of it, he won’t need to worry about either of those considerations. Just needs something that will fit the basic needs.

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            Yangyi has been improving on his English since we met. He thinks that he has progressed more than the Program thinks he has. He feels that he is becoming more advanced, and his scores even support it, but doesn’t think that perhaps his lessons are progressing at the same speed that he is.

Though I can’t tell a huge change since we first met, I do think that our particular conversations are strolling along a little less awkwardly. I attribute this partly to us finding that we actually have things in common with one another. I have a friend who I continually see around campus named Wesley. When we see each other we always yell “Serendipity!” because we don’t even know each other’s last names, but we see each other on campus sometimes even twice a day. We might be eating at the same time, studying in the library at 2am, or walking back from class to our 2 separate residence halls. When recently eating with Wesley, he said something about his roommate also being international (Wesley is from Kenya). I asked where he lived, and I thought it was interesting that he lived in the same Residence Hall as Yangyi. According to Wesley, all international students know each other because they are international. Since his saying this over-confident untruth, I have proved him incorrect in a multitude of ways, but in this case, I thought I would check the theory. I said, “Oh, I know a guy from China that lives there. Do you know Yangyi?” What a coincidence! Yangyi is his roommate! TCU is such an interconnected network of people. It is amazing to see how we are all somehow connected on this beautiful campus.