On Wednesday evening, October 23rd, Mad and I went
rock climbing at the TCU Rec Center wall.
Having both just returned to
school from a rejuvenating five day Fall Break the previous night, we were eager
to get together and exchange stories. Mad had gone on an adventure in Austin while
I traveled to Lake Tahoe, California. His days in Austin were spent, as he would
say “living the good life,” indicating he had gone sightseeing in the day and
to clubs at night. Mad finds drinking and partying extremely
exhilarating because to him it’s a foreign concept. Alcohol and its consumption
are outlawed in Saudi Arabia. In fact,
the very first time his lips ever touched alcohol was on American soil six
months ago. While admittedly he had the
time of his life on his adventure, he came back low on funds and quite tired. He
laughed as he said he embarrassingly that he had to call his mom to ask her to
send a few hundred dollars to tied him over until his next scholarship program check.
We made our
way over the rock wall together after the exchange of stories and he poignantly
reminded me that this was the location we first met last year. I introduced him to my co-workers who were on
shift and then we began to ascend and descend the climbing wall. I explained to him how we manage the rock
wall and how sport climbing works. He found this intriguing because back home
the only two sports commonly engaged in are weight lifting and soccer. To him the concept of American football,
basketball, baseball, lacrosse, volleyball etc. are all very foreign.
Exhausted
from an hour of climbing, we made our way over to the Rec lobby couches, where
coincidently Game One of the World Series was being televised. I attempted to explain a few basics of baseball
but our conversation was cut short when my co-worker Mackenzie came over to say
hello. Mackenzie a poor, unfortunate soul who is not
only allergic to dairy and gluten but is also a Vegan for ethical reasons, was
enjoying a hearty meal that consisted of a bowl of vegetables and a
banana. I explained to Mad her dietary restrictions
and choices and he found it all very amusing.
Prior to his arrival to the
United States, Mad had never heard of anyone being allergic to food, much less
ever met a Vegetarian or Vegan.
Mackenzie went on to explain to Mad the basis for her circumstance and
choices.
Being the
eventful evening that it was, there also happened to be a volleyball game going
on in the Rec. A constant stream of families were milling in
and out of the center to attend the matches.
Seeing them led my mind to thinking
of my own family and to wonder how family life in Saudi Arabia is. So I began a long inquiry of questions. In
Saudi Arabia families are typically much larger than those of the typical
American ones. A Saudi Arabian family usually consists of
five to twelve children! Men can, and often do, have multiple wives and
it doesn’t stop there. Households go well beyond the immediate family; as it is
common for cousins, godparents, and grandparents to all live together. Astounded by the extent and importance of
families to Saudi Arabians, I begun to wonder how it was even economically
possible for males to support all of these wives, grandparents, nieces,
nephews, and children. Fathers take on a heavy financial burden and
provide for the whole family until their boys are old enough to work. Part of the reason males are able to have
such extensive families is because they do not usually find a spouse until they
are well into their mid to late thirties; for women it is more common to get
married in their late teens. As for parents,
they typically retire at fifty years old after which it is expected for their
male children to support them. As we
were talking, we saw Jerry, one of our older janitors who works at the Rec. Mad expressed his disgust for the way the
elderly in America elderly often have to work.
He said the American government should take better care of their elders,
as they do back home. “They have worked
their entire life and they disserve to be rewarded! They should not have to
work!” And to this I had no
response. He is absolutely right.
After hours
of climbing and conversation, we called it a night. As we departed, my mind was left still racing
and thinking of the vast differences between our customs, families, and
heritage. It is truly amazing how
different our realities can be.
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