This week Jessie and I didn't get to meet because of our crazy busy schedules. As fate would have it, we still got to see each other, even though it wasn't the best of situations.
I saw Jessie while I was on a quick run. I had dropped my ID card and luckily no one had picked it up. I say this because if I hadn't dropped my card, I wouldn't have been on that part of the path. I then see Jessie, in the middle of the road by the physical plant, crying, and then she almost got hit by a car.
"JESSIE GET OUT OF THE ROAD!' I yelled. She came over and this is apparently what had happened:
While in her international class one of the other girls (name and nationality removed for privacy reasons, but the girl wasn't chinese) pulled Jessie's hair. In China that's a huge insult. The equivalent of calling someone a poisonous b****.
Let me just say that Jessie is one of the sweetest women I've ever met and would never do anything to offend anyone on purpose.
Jessie then talked about how hard it was to be in a foreign culture for so long. It's surprising to hear considering how optimistic and fun loving Jessie has been all year. I talked her down, explaining how I was sorry and just tried to calm the poor girl down. I've had my more than fair share of mean girls to deal with.
Makes me wonder, did the other girl know how upsetting that small action was or was she innocent? Are we giving those who aren't from our culture too much credit?
Its so lucky that you found Jessie and were able to help her! That's such a sad story...I hope whoever pulled her hair didn't know how offensive it would be to her. What a weird thing to do in class! Maybe in some other cultures, pulling someone's hair is a compliment.
ReplyDeleteI still cannot believe that happened! I hope that it was not intentional, and I am praying that it has not affected her too greatly. She seems like a nice, fun girl, so I would hate to see her sad about going to class everyday. She should be enjoying our culture and the chance to experience it with other international students. Her time here should be exciting, not depressing.
ReplyDeleteWhat a blessing it was that you were there for her, not only to literally save her life, but to help her cope emotionally, as well. I can only imagine the emotions she felt that day. To be so far from home would cause enough stress, but to add insult to injury, the hurtful words of another could have only brought her down further. Good job Bailey, for not only helping her in that moment, but for establishing such a personal and strengthening relationship with your ESL partner- I'm sure your support means the world to her!
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