A Pleasant Surprise

On Friday afternoon, at around 1:00 pm, I strolled into Market Square to eat lunch.  I looked around hopefully to see if any of my friends where there, but – sadly – there were not.  I admitted defeat, and as I turned to walk outside to the balcony (to eat by myself), my conversation partner, Joe, called my name.

We said hello to each other, and then he asked me how I was doing.  I was happy I got to see him, and then he surprised me by asking me to join him and his friends for lunch.  What a kind gesture! Of course, I said yes!  I put my stuff down and made my way to the salad bar to finally eat some food (I was pretty hungry at this point in the day).

Once I sat down, we started talking about the differences in our meal selection: Joe was eating a burger and spaghetti with meatballs, and I was eating a small bowl of salad.   He gave me the strangest look (because he knows I like food), so then I explained to him that I was not feeling very well (hence the small amount of food).  This answer satisfied him, and as I was barely finishing my tiny salad, he stood up to get more spaghetti.

When he got back from his second round, our conversation took an interesting turn.  He asked me what I was doing this weekend, and I told him that I was going to San Antonio for my boyfriend’s fraternity’s formal – that’s a mouthful.  This evolved into us talking about dating and the differences between the U.S. and China.  Although he was surprised that this is my first boyfriend, he explained himself by saying that many people start dating one another in high school (like in the U.S.), and this kind of dating is “practice” for “real” relationships.  He said that at that age, people are not truly in love.  While I think there are people who fall in love in high school, I do agree that most people do not end up marrying their high school sweethearts because people change.

He used one of his friends, a former TCU student, as an example.  He told me that she is returning to China because her parents are worried about her.  His friend is 26, and she has yet to date someone.  Joe said that if she had already been in a relationship, her parents would not be as concerned.  However, most people in China get married at this age.  In the friend’s case, she still needs to find someone, date him, and then marry him.  This, in turn, could take a long time.

As Joe was telling me this, I felt sorry for his friend.  Nevertheless, I realized how similar the culture in China is to that of the U.S.  Society frowns upon not dating someone in high school, and people will especially think someone is strange if he/she has not dated another by the age of 26.  After all, women’s biological clocks are ticking, and they only have so much time to find a man, get married, and have children (with other circumstances pending, of course).

This prompted me to ask Joe about his past relationships.  He said that he dated a girl in high school for a couple of years, but they are no longer together.  I think she still lives in China.  He also told me that they talk to each other, but only occasionally.

Joe and I talked about a few more random things (to be honest, I do not remember all of them at the moment), and I am so glad we did.  I had a wonderful time talking to him, and thank goodness he noticed me in the BLUU!  As we parted ways, Joe told me that he enjoyed our conversation and that he hoped we could meet up again sometime soon.  I gave him the only possible answer: I would love to!