Cultures Gently Colliding

I'm sitting in the atrium of the building where most of my classes are held, and small groups of a class are meeting over their projects ...

I overhear the discussion at one table but can only pick up the main topic: What Is Femininity? Sitting at the table are perhaps five 18 to 21 year olds ...

... of the five, two are wearing low-cut jeans with tattoos visible above the back of their jeans and below their midriff-baring tops as they perch forward on their seats. They are typical American girls, heavy on the MAC and very assertive in their speech

In stark contrast, one of the other three is wearing the traditional Muslim headscarf and is artfully dressed to cover every inch of her body except her hands and the portion of her face not obscured by the scarf.

But her face -- totally un-made up -- is just as animated, if not more so, than the other girls. She gestures wildly, her face is so engaging, she's every bit the participant in this discussion of what it is to be a woman.

Although I couldn't make out everything being said, I didn't sense any arguments being put forth. The young women were simply enumerating things as one of them took the project notes.

What an oddly inspiring sight.