A Day in the Life

You are a 55-year-old naturalized citizen. Born and raised in China you sought a new life in the United States after being labeled a political dissident by the Communist Party of China (CCP). Making a life for your wife and son in the United States has been hard. Upon arrival in The United States, you have begun working at a restaurant owned by a friend who has been living in Oak Creek for the past 25 years. Your job has allowed you to survive and provide for your family without having to learn much English outside of basic phrases. Your wife and child, however, have learned English over the years through both work and school. Your wife, a researcher, has found a job 90 miles away and has moved to an apartment in the city. While she works during the week she stays in the city and comes home on the weekends. Your son is a nurse and still, lives at home with you. However, he has been saving money over the past few years for a place of his own. Without your wife and son navigating the world around you outside of work is nearly impossible. With your son on the verge of moving out and your wife gone most of the week you must figure out how you survive in this country that still feels so alien after all these years It has finally happened. Your son who has lived with you these past 23 years has moved out. You knew this day would come but it still makes you uneasy. For the past 15 years, you have been able to rely on your son to help you with everyday activities that required a much better grasp of the English language than you posses. Things such as medical check-ups, taking your car to the mechanic, and paying bills have become much more daunting. While your son and wife are both only a phone call away you realize that you must take a more active role. Recently you have noticed problems with your car and you know that it will not be long before you have to take your care in to be fixed. The idea of explaining the problems to a mechanic is frightening. These past 15 years you have been able to get by at work with simple phrases but you know your current level of English will not be sufficient this time. You remember that your friend whose restaurant you have been working at took ESL classes. [[call your friend]] [[call your son]] [[call your wife]]

Your friend answers his phone after the first ring. After exchanging pleasantries you [[ask him about the ESL classes he took]] [[ask about work]] [[ask him if he knows of any mechanics that speak mandarin]]

You decide to call your son. After the second ring he answers. You can tell from the tone of his voice that he is busy. [[ Tell him about the car and ask if he can take it to the mechanic]] [[ Ask him for help learning the phrases you need to talk to the mechanic]] [[ Ask him if he knows anywhere you can take ESL classes ]]

You decide to call your wife. The phone rings three times before going to voicemail. [[leave a voicemail for your wife asking her to call you back]] [[hang up]] [[call her again]]

Your wife's voicemail message plays out the standard greeting. After the beep, you leave her a message telling her that something is wrong with the car and most likely needs to be taken to a mechanic to be fixed. You proceed to leave her a few questions regarding budgeting and hang up. You feel a little disheartened that your wife didn't pick up but you know this problem won't fix itself so you decide to [[call your son]] [[call your friend]]

With a small sense of relief, you hang up the phone. She may be your wife but you still find yourself nervous talking to her about such things. You know something needs to be done with the car so next you decide to [[call your friend]] [[call your son]]

Although you know that she is probably busy at work you call her again. She has been the person you have relied on most throughout the years and her voice always seems to reassure you. You listen as the phone continues to ring and ring, you know that it is going to go to voicemail but you hold onto a small hope that she will answer. After a few short rings, the phone goes to voicemail. You know that something must be done about the car otherwise you won't be able to work so you decide to [[call your son]] [[leave a voicemail for your wife asking her to call you back]] [[call your friend]]

You tell your son about the car. You can hear the sounds of the urgent care that he works at in the background and from what you can tell it seems like a pretty busy day. "Dad it's a pretty busy day, I don't have long to chat. What's up?" You quickly explain to him that there is something wrong with the car and ask him to take it in. "Dad, I understand that you need to get this car fixed but I have way too much to do, there is no way I would have time until next month. Anyways, now that I've moved out it's probably about time for you to figure out how to take care of stuff. Try calling mom or someone from work." You can tell from his voice that he is stressed. You quickly mutter goodbye and hang up. Your son is right, it's probably time to give him some space now that he is all grown up. Well you think to yourself I should [[call your friend]] [[call your wife]]

You tell your son about the car. You can hear the sounds of the urgent care that he works at in the background and from what you can tell it seems like a pretty busy day. "Dad it's a pretty busy day, I don't have long to chat. What's up?" You quickly explain to him that there is something wrong with the car and explain that it is going to have to be taken to a mechanic soon. You ask him if he has time to teach you the phrases you will need to get the car fixed. "Dad, I would really love to but it doesn't look like I will have much free time coming up. I remember talking to one of your friends from work. I think he took some ESL classes somewhere, maybe you should ask him. Anyways I have to get back to work, let me know how things go." You hang up the phone. You know exactly which friend he is talking about it might be worth giving him a call. [[call your friend]]

Your son answers the phone in a hurried tone. "Hey, Dad, what's up? I don't have much time to chat." You tell your son that you are interested in taking ESL classes. "Dad! That's amazing. I'm proud of you for finally taking the first step. I remember talking to one of your friends awhile back, he said he took some ESL classes downtown when he first moved here, you should give him a call. I really need to go but let me know how things go!" You can hear the excitement in his voice for the first time in years. You feel a blossom of joy in your heart. You know this is the right thing to do, you look at your phone begin to dial the number to [[call your friend]]

You ask your friend about the ESL classes he took. You are a bit nervous to ask. Your friend tells you that when he first came to The United States 25 years ago he knew he needed to learn english as fast as he could so he could start his own business. He tells you that the classes he took at the Indochinese Learning Center really helped him. Not only was he able to learn english but he got a feel for the city and its culture as well. He gives you the number and you quickly jot it down. He encourages you to give them a call. You say your goodbyes and hang up. [[Call the Center]]

You ask your friend about work. After discussing the schedule and such your friend ask "So why did you really call?" You tell him that you are having problems with your car and don't really know what to do now that both your son and wife are out of the house. While you have both talked about your preference not to speak English he does not know how little you actually speak. "Don't worry about it man, just a few phrases are more than enough, the mechanic will most likely be able to figure it out whats wrong with the car without need much from you. But I mean, maybe this is a sign that it's finally time for you to learn some English. I know it's hard but I took some ESL classes myself back in the day..." [[ask him about the ESL classes he took]]

"Not that I know of man, Milwaukee doesn't really have the largest Chinese community." While you had not really had a ton of faith in finding a mechanic that spoke your language you still feel a little disheartened. The process of trying to get the car fixed seems more and more of a challenge that it had once seemed. As your mind races thinking about how you are going to figure out what to do your friend asks "Is your English really still that bad? If you want I know a place you can go to take ESL classes if you want. The people are nice and the classes are easy. The best part is that it's free. I took some when I moved here." [[ask him about the ESL classes he took]]

You have decided to take ESL classes. The first step is to call the number your friend gave you. You hesitate before dialing the number. Unsure if you will be able to effectively communicate with the ESL center you begin to feel a sense of dread and apprehension. It has been a long time since you have taken such a bold step forward and you feel exposed and vulnerable. In your home country you were once a well respected man, one who commanded respect but it has been a long time since you have been this man. Now after years of isolation and a humble life you feel small and weak. However you know that if you want to move forward you must make this first step, you steel yourself and dial the number. After two rings a woman answers the phone "Thank you for calling The International Learning Center, how may I help you?" You explain to her to the best of your abilities that you wish to take ESL classes. She seems to understand you and invites you to come down the next day at 1030am for the adult class. You thank her and hang up. Satisified with your progress you decide to [[text your son]] [[text your wife]]

You send your son a text "I start classes tomorrow." A few minutes later your son responds "Good for you, let me know if you need help." You put your phone away, clean up around the house, and make yourself some dinner. Having talked with your son you feel a sense of pride in yourself. You spend the rest of your day preparing for the next day. You iron your clothes and set aside the materials you think you'll need for school. It has been well over twenty years since you have set foot in a school. You are nervous but always feel a bit more relaxed when you do household chores so you continue to iron the rest of the laundry and do small tasks around the house before going to bed. [[October, 11th]]

You send your wife a quick text. "Starting ESL classes tomorrow, wish me luck." You know that she is busy so you don't expect a text back right away. You spend the rest of your day preparing for the next day. You iron your clothes and set aside the materials you think you'll need for school. It has been well over twenty years since you have set foot in a school. You are nervous but always feel a bit more relaxed when you do household chores so you continue to iron the rest of the laundry and do small tasks around the house before going to bed. As you are getting ready to go to sleep you get a text from your wife " :) good luck tomorrow, I'm sure you'll do great." You read the text and feel a bit better about tomorrow. [[October, 11th]]

You wake up the next day just as the sun rises. This is a habit you have never been able to shake. As a child living in China, you had grown up working on a farm. Every morning you would rise with the sun and go to work with your three brothers, assorted aunts and uncles, and your father. Every day you would work sunup to sundown, a life that you worked very hard to get away from. However even as you rose through the ranks of government officials you could never shake the habit of waking up just as the sun began to rise. As you go through your morning routine you think about starting your ESL classes today. You have made a commitment to go but you still feel a slight desire not to go. The thing is, you know you really need to go. You’ve exhausted all other options and have come to the very real conclusion that if the car is going to get fixed you will have to be the one to go take it in. With a renewed sense of purpose, you finish up your morning tasks and get ready for the drive to the center. Despite spending a lot of time driving to the restaurant you have never really have had a need to be in the area that the center is in. The center is located a little outside of the main part of downtown Milwaukee, a few blocks away from Marquette University's campus. You had been to the area only once before because your son had wanted to go to Marquette for their nursing program but for your family's finances, it simply wasn’t possible. Putting aside thoughts of the past you get into your car and begin your drive. You decide to drive through Wauwatosa instead of taking the highway downtown. There is something comforting about driving the streets that you are so familiar with. You know that today you’re taking a huge step outside of your comfort zone so for now, you embrace the familiarity of your route. After a while of driving, you turn onto Wisconsin Ave and drive the remaining few blocks towards the church in which the center is located. Turning into the parking lot at 10:15 you park your car in the south lot and head for the back door. You press the buzzer and the door unlocks letting you inside. You walk inside and after trying several locked doors you take the stairs down to a large open room. Inside the room you see lots of people, some your age and some as young as three or four. After getting your bearings you figure the best course of action is to head to the large desk in the back of the room, maybe someone there will tell you where to go. When you reach the desk a kind looking lady directs you to the first classroom on the left. Nervously you approach the doors unsure of what to expect. You find yourself staring at the door for what seems like hours when a stranger's voice asks “Are you here for our adult ESL classes?” [[nod your head yes]] [[firmly answer yes]] [[say nothing, and shake your head]]

You are invited into the classroom. While you have arrived dressed in pressed khakis and a polo however you see many of your fellow student dressed in second-hand clothes. You feel slightly out of place and after a quick scan of the room, you are fairly sure that none of the other students come from China. However, you do feel a sense of relief when you notice that all of the students are around your age except for one young woman who sits in the back intensely coloring in some sort of coloring book. You look around the classroom and decide to [[take a seat as far away from anyone else as possible]] [[in the front row]]

"Well, welcome! We are very glad to have you here. Why don't you go inside and find a place to sit down before class begins." The teacer gesuters towards the classroom. You feel slightly out of place as after a quick scan of the room, you are fairly sure that none of the other students come from China. However, you do feel a sense of relief when you notice that all of the students are around your age except for one young woman who sits in the back intensely coloring in some sort of coloring book. You look around the classroom and decide to [[take a seat as far away from anyone else as possible]] [[in the front row]]

"I see, well let me know if you need anything." You mutter a quick thanks and begin heading out the way you came in, you pass by a classroom on the way out and see students your age happily talking, it really doesn't look as bad as you thought it was going to be. This is your last chance to decide what you do, you think deeply about your choice and how your family and friend will feel. After deep consideration do you [[go back and try again]] [[drive home]]

You sit down as far away from everyone as you can. It has been many years since you have made new friends and you don’t feel like starting now. You are here to learn what you need to learn and get out. You set the notebook and pencil you brought with you on the desk and wait for class to begin. You look around the room while you wait. The room reminds you of the elementary school your son went to. One wall is covered in different pictures of food divided into two groups under the labels of “healthy’ and “unhealthy.” The front of the room is mostly comprised of a giant whiteboard on which the current date is written in large, neat handwriting. To the far right is an oddly placed counter with a sink, there are cups on the counter so you assume it is for people to get water during lessons. Despite knowing why it is there it seems very odd and out of place to you. [[class begins]]

You sit in the front row. You are here to learn and succeed. When your son was going to school you always encouraged him to sit in the front row of lectures so that he wouldn’t get distracted and you are now living your own advice. [[class begins]]

The table begins to fill in around as students come in. The teacher now stands at the door greeting each student as they come in. You make a note that each student entering says “Hello teacher” now next time you come to class you will be sure to follow suit. It is important that you do everything you can to show that you want to be there. Around five minutes before class begins a young man enters the room and takes a seat at the back table with the young woman. The teacher walks over to him and after a short conversation, you watch as both he and the young woman begin to work on a puzzle. The teacher now stands in front of the room and in a slow and deliberate tone announces to the class “This is David, he lives in Wauwatosa and he is from China. Are any of you from China?” You look around to see the other students shaking their heads. The teacher then says “Shar Gay where are you from?” motioning to an older looking woman sitting two seats to the left of you. “Burma” she answers. “And you, Mya Aye?” “Burma” she replies. As the teacher asks each student where they are from you realize that every single student except yourself is from Burma. You recall that Burma has had a hard past couple of years with the United States recently going as far as to accuse Burma of ethnic cleansing. Like you these people have fled their country and the oppressive government that ruled it in hopes for a better life. You feel a certain kinship with these people that you have in the past only reserved for your fellow countrymen. The teacher interrupts your train of thought by handing you a set of blank notecards. The teacher asks you to write the following on your note cards: First name, last name, address, city, state, zip code, and date of birth. Your hand shakily copies down the information from the license onto the note cards. Thankfully years of working for the restaurant has given you enough contact with the English language for basic reading and recognition skills. Although you know you would have a hard time articulating the things you are writing down you are at least rather confident that you can produce the information the teacher has asked for. The problem lies in the fact that you have almost zero experience writing in English. Every government form you filled out has been done by your son as well as all medical records and tax forms. As someone who was able to write over a thousand characters in Chinese by the time you were ten, you feel a deep level of frustration rise in you as you attempt to write your letters perfectly. As your frustration builds [[look at what the other students are writing]] [[try to mirror the writing as you see it on your ID]]

You look over at the student next to you. She is a woman who appears to be about fifty. Despite the rather cold weather of October, she is still wearing sandals and a long bright traditional skirt paired with Disney world sweatshirt. Confused at her attire you look to see what she is writing down on her paper. After a quick scan, it appears that she is writing the same information that you are but instead of on note cards she is filling the information onto a labeled piece of paper. Beside her paper, you notice that she also has a set of notecards similar to yours that she glances at as she writes. You breathe a deep sigh of relief as you notice her handwriting is just as bad if not slightly worse than yours. With a renewed sense of confidence [[continue working on your notecards]]

You look down at your state issued ID. Seeing that picture reminds you when you first came to this country. When you first came here you were a much younger man bringing his family to the United States in hope of a better life and far away from the political problems that plagued your country. It wasn’t an easy thing to do, to leave your entire life and everything you knew back in China but it was something that you had to do for your family and yourself. Looking at that picture you are reminded of the life you left behind. Not only that but looking at your ID reminds you how out of place you feel in this country. In China, you were just another man but here in the United States, you are a Chinese man. Your name seems out of place next to the English writing on the card. This feeling is one that you have felt constantly since you moved. While the United States has prided itself in being a land of diversity, that diversity is often paradoxically segregated based on zip code. Living in Wauwatosa your son was one of the only Chinese children for his entire time in school. Picking your son up from school was a constant reminder of this. It was always easy to pick him out in sea of white faces; good for you but bad for him. You first realized how cruel kids could be when your son came home crying after a particularly awful group of children would slant their eyes at him every time they passed in the hallway. This kind of thing never seemed to end but instead only change as he got older. As kids grow up they become more clever but never less cruel, the taunts became a daily thing that he lived with. Sometimes you felt that maybe settling down in the center of an almost all white community was a bad choice but you quickly came to recognize racism was everywhere in this country. While most people who came into the restaurant that you work at are Asian most of the people you delivered food to are not. Nine times out of ten a transaction involved few words and went smoothly there was always that one person to make a small slur or joke. At first when you didn’t understand any English such things didn’t matter but the more you heard and the more you learned these interactions began to take a much darker twist. Looking at your ID and seeing the clashing of cultures printed on the plastic reminded you how out of place you felt in this country. But as you look around and see so many faces similar to yours, living lives similar to yours you feel that maybe you aren’t as out of place as you thought. You look down at your blank notecards and [[continue working on your notecards]]

After you finish writing the teacher walks over and says “Good job David! It seems like you know what you’re doing” Maybe this won't be as bad as you anticipated you think to yourself. With the initial activity out of the way the teacher hands out blank calendars and asks the students to split into two groups. The young man from the back stands up and prepares a table at the back for one group to sit at. Do you [[go to the back]] [[stay with the group up front]]

You get up and go towards the back. The table in the back has fewer seats and you think that you will be better able to work and learn in a smaller group. You and four other students pull chairs over to the table and sit down. The young man brings over a large calendar on an easel and places it on the table. After the easel is set up he walks over to you, extends his hand, and introduces himself “Hello David, my name is John and I volunteer here a few times a week.” You shake his hand and look down at the blank calendar you were given. “This is a calendar of November,” he says pointing at both the calendar in front of you and at the one on the easel. “What I want you to do is fill out the calendar in front of you to match the one on this easel” he continues. You see the other students begin to put together what he said and begin to fill in the blank spaces. Looking at your own calendar and comparing it to the one on the easel you begin to label the boxes 1-30. You have had lots of experience working with numbers and are confident in your ability to write them. After a few minutes, you show John your work. “Very good David, but if you look on the calendar November does not start until Wednesday so on the first Wednesday you would start with 1 and go to 30 from there.” You feel your cheeks redden slightly, you look up at the calendar and notice the first few spaces are blank. In your eagerness to show how much know you accidentally made a small mistake in labeling. Once you write the correct number in each blank you show John who nods approvingly. You feel much better about yourself as time goes on and your fellow students are still working on their own calendars. After sometime you [[wait silently for the others to finish]] [[help others with their labeling]]

You decide to stay where you are already sitting. You don't feel the need to go above and beyond. As you are sitting there getting ready to listen to what the teacher is going to say next she walks over to you and points to the back "Hey David, why don't you go join the group in the back." It appears you really do not have much of a choice in the matter so you get up and [[go to the back]]

You decide to wait silently for the others to finish. This gives you a chance to observe the others as they work. You can tell that many of the other students are not very familiar with calendars. Many of the other students do not fully grasp the concept of what they are doing. The student to the left of you has simply labeled each empty space a different number, some in order and some not. The student to the right of you has labeled each space one through seven for each week. You understand that it must be very hard for them to understand what exactly they are supposed to be doing. The directions are all given in English and with their limited understanding of the language you are surprised that anyone really knows what to do at all. You can tell that many of these people have not been here nearly as long as you and you find yourself impressed with their efforts. In spite of your earlier instincts, you decide to [[help others with their labeling]]

You decide to help the student next to you on their calendar. You notice that this student made the same mistake as you and has begun to label their calendar starting with the first blank space instead of matching the calendar on the easel. You point to the first Wednesday on their calendar and say “One” the students look at you with a confused look but after showing them on both your own calendar and the one on the easel you see a wave of understanding go over their face and they begin to erase their work and rewrite their numbers to match yours. As this occurs another student notices and follows suit. You feel a sense of pride in your accomplishments. As you help the second student finish your calendar the teacher begins to call groups of students forward. The teacher calls your name along with a few others that you don't recognize. You go to the front of the room and the teacher tells you and the others to follow John. Following him, you and three other students head towards the computers located in the main room of the center. John sets up a program called Starfall on four separate computers and motions for each of you to sit. You take your seat and begin clicking on the program. The program seems to be designed for children with large letters and lots of colors. You quickly click through the options and decide to work on an interactive story. While you have no problem picking up most words you are unsure of how to pronounce them. John see's you looking intently at the story in front of you and hands you a set of headphones. You put them on and click on the speaker icon at the bottom of the page. A woman's voice reads the first page of the story aloud. You do your best to follow along with what she is saying but it is hard to do. The English language has so many sounds that are foreign to you. After repeating the audio for the page a few times you feel yourself becoming more and more comfortable speaking a few of the words. Proud of yourself you look around to see how the other students are doing. It becomes very clear to you that many of these students have never used a computer before. The woman next to you has somehow managed to zoom in so far that the entire screen is just the letter “A” while the student on your other side has opened roughly eight different tabs in the internet browser. Fortunately for you, you and your family have owned a computer ever since you moved to the states. You have been using the computer ever since you first got it as a way to communicate with your friends and family back home. When you aren’t working you tend to spend a decent amount of time on the QQ which is a messaging service that is extremely popular in China. All of these years you have taken your computer literacy for granted but as you watch your fellow students trying their hardest to navigate such a simple program you consider yourself lucky for what you have. After ten or so minutes John tells you that you and your group can head back towards the classroom. You and your fellow students get up and head back to the room. You enter the class room and sit a table with the other students. After a few minutes the teacher call announces that class is over. You get up and begin to head for the door when the teacher walks of and ask's you if you will be coming back. After a few seconds you answer [[Yes, I will be back]] [[Shake your head no]]

“I am very glad to hear it! I will see you tomorrow then” she says. You reply with a quick thank you and head for the door. You feel a wave of relief wash over you as you leave the building. While at first, you were unsure that you would be able to do this there is a new sense of confidence about you as you head home. You have taken the first steps towards independence and it is exhilarating. [[Head towards your car]]

The teacher looks at you and you can see the disappointment in her eyes. She asks you "Why not?" you [[you tell her you're busy]] [[say nothing]]

You tell her that you're busy. She seems to understand and nods. She tells you that anytime you are ready to come back that you are welcome to. You thank her and quickly head out to the parking lot. The students wave and smile as you head to your car. This does nothing to alleviate the guilt that you are feeling. [[drive home]]

You choose to say nothing. You know that your English skills are far too limited to express how you feel. The thing is that you just don't find these classes to be helpful enough for the time commitment required of you. You spend so much time at work to justify spending your free time at the center. You do feel a sense of failure coming from your actions. You know that by going down this path you are letting down your son, wife, and friend, all who believed that you could do this. You feel a great sense of guilt but you do not think you are ready for the challenge that you know these classes will eventually pose. It is hard for you to back out knowing how disappointed everyone who helped you will feel but it will not be as hard as continuing down this path. The teacher asks you again if you will be back and this time you tell her no. You walk out of the building in silence and head towards your car [[drive home]]

You head towards your car and get ready to begin your drive home. You take a look at the parking lot as you leave and see your fellow classmates milling around in the parking lot. It may not be something that will come easy for you but you feel that it is something you may begin to enjoy. Your drive home from the center taking Wisconsin ave most of the way. Your work life does not often lead you to this area of town so for you this a new experience. Although driving through the city is not something many people enjoy you feel a sense of enjoyment as your drive. After spending years driving your usual routes you feel as the city has begun to open up to you as you step outside of your comfort zone. For many years you have been something akin to a prisoner in this new land but it has been a prison of your own creation. One created by a reluctance to overcome cultural barriers, one created by your own inaction but as you continue your drive through parts of the city you have never seen before you feel as if the prison walls have begun to crumble. After about twenty minutes you arrive at home and park the car. While it was a smooth ride today you cannot help but worry about the inevitable. The car has begun to show the signs of its age on the outside. The wheel wells have begun to rust and the body has accumulated quite a few nicks and dents from years of driving. As you make the walk from the car to your door you look back at the car. Seeing the car in the shape that it's in has furthered your resolve to learn English so that you can preserve the sense of freedom that you have felt today. The End

With a heavy heart and an intense sensation of guilt you get in your car and drive home. The ride seems ten times longer now than it did on the way there. You know that there will be a few hard conversations ahead of you but that's just the way things go sometimes. This like many other things in life will pass and you will settle back into your old routine. After everything you have seen in this country nothing has ever made you feel at home. There is a deep disconnect between your sense of self and your current situation. No matter what you have done over the years nothing has ever made this country feel less foreign to you. While the world has changed around you, you have managed to remain a static character unready and unwilling to adapt to the world around you. You know in your heart that this country is not a place for you but you understand that it is a place for your family. Everyone else has created a life around you and your choices and for now, all you can do is to keep doing what you always have been doing. Tomorrow you will wake up and go to work. Your son may call you or your wife may call you and when they do you will tell them why you are no longer going to class. You dread the conversations but accept that this is what you have chosen. You have chosen to stay how you are, to remain isolated as the rest of the people you know grow further and further away from you. It is a painful thing for you to imagine but you will survive. Hell, maybe you'll move back to China in a few years when you have some more money. A few blocks away from home your car sputters and stalls out. You try everything you can think of but nothing is working. Maybe it's time to try again. [[Start]]

You think about how far you have already come and decide to go back and try again. Your wife, son, and friend all believe that you can do this and you start believing that you can too. The woman at the desk looks suprised to see you again but kindly asks "Are you here for ESL classes?" You [[nod your head yes]]