Dewi

I met yesterday on Hello Talk, the language sharing app, a delightful young woman from Aceh by the name of Dewi. She already speaks English rather well, and in fact taught English for a time to Indonesian students. It was a pleasure to visit with her, and the start, I hope, of a rewarding and educative friendship. 

It is always hit and miss on Hello Talk. Some people merely say 'Hi', and then never appear again, even to answer one's response. Some chat a couple times and then disappear, having run out of things to say, I suppose. One woman who chatted with me recently told me, rather inexplicably, her entire life story in great detail, and then altogether stopped speaking. This strikes me as strange. I don't know, perhaps she just needed an ear--even, or perhaps especially, an anonymous one. Which is okay. The point, after all, is to learn another language, and to share one's own. 

Most of these folks are young, making their way in life, perhaps raising children, endeavoring to improve themselves, expand their knowledge and experience. I love taking a small part in this way, via communication, in the energy and verve of youth, to hear of their hopes and dreams, to remember, by way of hearing, the immediacy of an emotional engagement in day-to-day life.