A Thank You Note

May 19

The curly brown hair poked out from under the bright green felt hat; the little car perched quietly on the street side, its two spherical yellow eyes glowing in the dim winter morning. The Dutch Leprechaun was here to pick up her only passenger, too polite – or too creepy – to let the passenger know she was here early.  So she just took out her magazine and read up on the many detriments of drinking diet soda.

“Ullo!” she said brightly as her passenger, a South Asian chick, opened the car door. Only Dutch Leprechauns can reach that squeaky, radiant high pitch so early in the morning, complete with a wide grin. “Morning,” the South Asian chick would reply in an averagely friendly tone.

The questions would start as soon as the car engine revved into life. The Dutch Leprechaun had to be in a perpetual state of inquiry. She would often hop from one to another, trying to draw complete pictures of lives that she did not know, and then ask more, to color in the sketches. Sometimes the South Asian would run out of words so she would ask the Leprechaun to shut up. But not for long. The South Asian chick understood that the questions were kind of a lifeline for DL. If she stopped asking, she might lapse into a long Sleeping Beauty-like sleep. Some curse associated with being a leprechaun.

The green felt hat was worth it, though.

DL was a little kooky. She talked in strange accents, and thought it was funny to make jokes like “your mother called me and told me she doesn’t like you”. She also made jokes about teenage serial killers who stalked and subsequently stabbed their mentors. DL also invented the Chicken Dance.

The South Asian was utterly thankful for the early mornings and early afternoons spent in DL’s blue car. And playing catch in the scruffy office. And getting an opportunity to bring out her goofy preteen personas. And, although she would never, ever say it, asked all those questions because it made her feel like people cared about the world outside of the United States.

Thanks, DL for a fun semester. If you have trouble making friends with the education people next year because you’re so weird, you should know I’m here for you. Every now and then, when I’m not busy being a groovy South Asian chick.