Internationalmatt's Blog

This blog is about my international friends and their inspiring stories

Sunday Fun with my International Friends

Yesterday was another fun day with my international friends. It was a slice of my life with people from diverse cultures. It started with three friends coming to my Sunday class, two that had come before but I had not seen for a long time and one for his first time, that were welcome additions. I had a conversation with one friend in the van about a spider in her apartment and her attempt to get rid of the spider with perfume. My friend Isis from Brazil came and I am so proud of her. She is finishing her Master’s Degree in Computer Science. In class we focused on what God’s love is like and how relationships are eternal.

I had lunch with Shawn and Lien after church. Lien always cooks delicious food. She also always prepares healthy meals. We had a great time with a fun unexpected moment. Lien spotted some candy Shawn had put in a bookcase and we had a good laugh.

Shawn and Lien

In the afternoon I met with a student from El Salvador. We met at church for a tutoring session. I am looking forward to meeting with him in the coming months and hope to help him to improve his English and thus his life in America. I also helped a family from Iran to finalize what they needed to do for their apartment. They will be able to move out of the City Mission today.

I finished up my day by visiting some friends from Vietnam. It was my first visit to their apartment. I noticed one thing when I first walked in which was that they had no furniture. That is by choice not by circumstance. My friends like open space in their apartment. We talked about their future here in America.

It was a typical Sunday for me. I spent time with friends from Brazil, China, El Salvador, Japan, Iran and Vietnam. It was the kind of day that makes me think abut something Jesus said “For God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only Son so that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life”. God loves all people in all places. It also makes me think about how  my hometown of Lincoln has changed. It had all of 90,000 people when I was a child and has grown to 280,000 which includes thousands of people from numerous countries. I am glad to be a part of life here and to be able to share God’s love with the world.

May 17, 2010 Posted by | Brazilian friends, Chinese friends, Cultural Ambassdors, Experiences of international friends, Hispanic friends, International Friendships, Internationals, Iran, Japanese friends, Uncategorized, Vietnamese friends | Leave a Comment

Springtime- Fun Beginning to End

When I ask my international friends which season they like the most many of them say Spring. The next question I always ask is why. The responses are usually things such as flowers grow, the trees are green, the grass is green, the birds come back, and the weather is warmer. Some cultures have significant holidays to celebrate the arrival of Spring such as NoRuz in Central Asia. I have enjoyed some memorable moments in the Spring with my international friends.

I have enjoyed fun times in early Spring with my friends. In April 2005 I went to Romania to celebrate their Easter with them in Constanta Romania. A few years ago I joined some of my Iranian friends at Pioneers Park in Lincoln for their NoRuz celebration. I am thankful for Claritin which allows me to enjoy Spring without allergies.

Late Spring has provided me with some of my favorite moments such as a picnic on Memorial Day with my Saturday Reading Class and their friends. That was also at Pioneers Park in Lincoln. We barbecued, tossed a baseball around, played with a volleyball, and went for a walk to explore the park.

This leads me to my poll this week which is what is your favorite part of Spring. A pleasant thought after the hard winter we had.

March 26, 2010 Posted by | International Friendships, Internationals, Iran, Spring, Vietnamese friends | Leave a Comment

A Sunday Party with Iranian Friends to Celebrate NoRuz

Yesterday I spent the afternoon with some friends from Iran to celebrate their holiday NoRuz. Nouz is a celebration of the arrival of Spring and is basically their New Year. It is one of their most important holidays. Some of my friends do not have a car and I knew that visiting family is important, so I picked up one family to bring them to the party.

They were happy to be able to come visit their cousins for NoRuz. We had a lot of good food. It was fish with vegetables and rice. There was a special table they call the Haft Seen which had fruit, nuts and other items for decoration.The green plants on the table represent nature coming back to life after winter.

Our hostess was thrilled to have family and friends in her house for NoRuz.  She smiled broadly the whole time and kept telling me “my family is here”. She brought the in the food to show me what she had cooked. She did not expect me to take a picture, but she smiled anyway.

our host Abdol and our Hostess Faruzan

We listened to some lively music and they danced some as well. As people came in they all greeted each other with a kiss on each cheek. It was a joyous time for all of the guests. The children were intrigued by me and we played some as they tried to figure out who I am. Normally on the last day of Noruz the celebration is held outside in a park, but it was not warm enough for that yesterday, so the celbration was in their home. It was a wonderful way to spend my Sunday afternoon. All of my friends came here as refugees and I know their life stories, so it was gratifying to see them experience some joy in their lives.

March 22, 2010 Posted by | Cutural Celebrations, international fashion and crafts, International Friendships, Internationals, Iran, Middle East friends, Peruvian Friends, Refugees | Leave a Comment

NoRuz is coming- some of my new friends from Iran

NoRuz is coming in a few days. It is a celebration of the arrival of Spring in Iran, Afghanistan, and many places in Central Asia. The last day of NoRuz the celebrants spend the day outside to symbolize the arrival of new things in their lives. This year I will spend time with some new friends from Iran. I enjoyed a delicious dinner at their apartment a few months ago and look forward to a fun picnic-weather permitting- with them next week. Our meal was at the home of Abdol and Faruzhan.

me with Faruzhan and Abdol

Abdol is fun to be around. We joke and laugh a lot. He will claim to be the chef while Faruzhan gives him the look that a wife gives to tell her husband to tell the truth. They came here with their son and daughter who are in school and their oldest child a daughter who is married and have a baby. Their cousins Bahman and Jamina were also there that evening.

me with Bahma and Jamina

It was interesting to hear their stories about life in Iran as a minority group there. Spending time with them it is easy to not realize they have endured hardship because they are so warm and friendly. They are so fun to be around that when I hear their stories about life before they came here it is hard to imagine what they experienced. That is how I have felt many times when I spend time with refugees. The life of a refugee is a difficult experience to endure. They leave their homes and culture and come to a place that is vastly different than what is normal for them and learn a new  language and culture. The fortunate ones come with family and help each other. The unfortunate ones get separated from their families.

I am looking forward to celebrating NoRuz with my new friends from Iran. I hope we have nice weather for it next week, but after the winter we had in Nebraska I am not sure. Nice weather or bad weather either way I will spend time with them.

March 17, 2010 Posted by | Cutural Celebrations, Experiences of international friends, International Friendships, Internationals, Iran, Refugees | Leave a Comment

Spring Memories- A picnic with friends from Iran for NoRuz

Our last week in February is another week of cold and possibly more snow. It seems fitting to end February with such weather as we come to the end of what has been a long winter. Spring is coming in only 23 days according to the calendar anyway. The weather  may not change for a few more weeks after that but Spring is coming. In the Spring there is a celebration called NoRuz in places such as Iran, Afghanistan and other places in Central Asia. A few years ago I joined some of my Iranian friends at Pioneers Park in Lincoln for their NoRuz celebration.

my friends enjoying a Spring day outside for NoRuz

At the end of this celebration which can last two weeks people go outside to have a picnic to represent the start of a New Year. Going outside symbolizes leaving the old behind and welcoming the new. At our picnic there was plenty of delicious food, lively music, and fun. Some of the young people danced. Many played games. Everyone had fun.

That year we had nice weather for the picnic. I am not confident that we will have nice weather by March 2oth this year. It is to imagine having a picnic in only three weeks. For my friends from Iran I hope we have nice weather, so they can celebrate NoRuz with nice Spring weather. For me I hope we have nice weather because as much as I like snow, this year I am ready for Spring to come.

February 24, 2010 Posted by | Afghanistan, Cutural Celebrations, Experiences of international friends, Holidays, International Friendships, Internationals, Iran, Spring | Leave a Comment

Meeting new friends at a new restaurant

One evening last week I had the wonderful opportunity to meet some new friends at a new restaurant here in Lincoln. My new friends are Ehsan from Iran and Yue Zou from China.We had an interesting conversation which taught me more about their countries and cultures. Both of my new friends are highly intelligent and our conversation was intellectually stimulating for me. Hanging out with PhD students helps me to stay mentally fresh. Spending time with my international friends expands my understanding of the world around us.

my new friends Ehsan and Yue Zou

The new restaurant is a Chinese Buffet/Mongolian Grill at 66th and O streets. I love going to a Mongolian Grill such as at the new Buffet we went to because I can control what the food is seasoned with. Asian food is delicious to me but the problem I have is one hour after eating at an Asian restaurant  have a day ending headache from the MSG in the food. At a Mongolian Grill I can control what seasoning is pu ton the food. There are a wide variety of choices for the grill for both meat and vegetables. The workers were friendly and the restaurant was clean. I plan to go back again.

My evening with Ehsan and Yue Zou illustrates to me of how much our lives can be enriched and our understanding of the world developed if we take the time to share a meal with someone from another country. In Lincoln we have people from numerous cultures and countries who are living here. They can teach us if we open ourselves to friendship with them.

January 26, 2010 Posted by | Chinese friends, Cultural Ambassdors, Experiences of international friends, food, International Friendships, Internationals, Iran | Leave a Comment

Our Middle Eastern friends in Light of the Tragedy at Fort Hood

Abdol 005

a meal with Iranian friends

Last night I had a wonderful experience. I spent the evening with a family from Iran. They are not Muslim. They are Baptist and came here for religious freedom. We had a great time with delicious food, good conversation, and a lot of laughter. Abdol is the father/new grandfather. His granddaughter is 3 months old. He talks about his granddaughter all the time. He his wife and family. His cousin joined us along with his wife. I enjoyed sharing an evening with them.

I have met many people from the Middle East- technically Iran is not in the Middle East- that are not Muslim. I have met people who are Christian, Catholic, B’Hai, and Yezedi. Even within the Muslim religion there are different sects of Islam. The reason I mention the diversity is that we might make the mistake of thinking that all people from the Middle East are the same. They are not. After 9-11 there were people who looked Middle Eastern who were mistreated. One that stands out in my mind was a man from India who is a Seik. Someone pulled his turban off. That was strange because India is not in the Middle East. There were other forms of harrassment and President Bush gave a speech about how that is not the American way of doing things

With all the diversity of beliefs and cultures I have observed within the “Middle East” community there is one thing that they have in common- they want to live where they are free, free from Brutal dictators, free from the violence of war, free to practice their religion, free to live in peace with their families. If we take the time to get to know our neighbors who look different than us, we may be pleasantly surprised to find out that they are more like we are than we know. Their food may be different, they may look different, but they will welcome you, show you family pictures, and appreciate your friendship.

November 7, 2009 Posted by | Cross Cultural, Cultural Ambassdors, Discrimination, Experiences of international friends, Iran, Muslims | Leave a Comment

   

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