International Introductions

Part One: Arrival in Dublin

This story is inspired by the airport comedy The Terminal. Carlos Vega arrives at a professional training workshop in Dublin, Ireland. Rain taps on the glass doors, and his blue luggage makes a loud click-click sound on the floor. Carlos is from Mexico, and he is Mexican. It is his first visit to Europe. He looks at a large map beside the registration desk. “Ireland is small on this map,” he says, “but this building is very big!”

A woman with a red umbrella is waiting at the desk. “Hello, I’m Yuki Sato,” she says. “I’m from Osaka, Japan. I’m Japanese.” Carlos points at her wet umbrella. “Are you from Tokyo?” he asks. Yuki laughs and shakes the silver drops onto the mat. “No, I’m not. I’m from Osaka.” A tall man carries a box of warm bread past them. Yuki asks, “Where is he from?” Carlos reads the man's badge. “He’s Daniel Murphy. He’s from Ireland. He’s Irish.”

Part Two: The Badge Problem

At the registration desk, a printer hums and produces three white badges. Carlos takes the first badge. It says: CARLOS VEGA — CANADA — CANADIAN. He raises his eyebrows. “This isn’t my badge information. I’m not from Canada. I’m from Mexico, and I’m Mexican.” Yuki checks her badge. It says that she is Italian. “I’m not Italian,” she says. “I’m Japanese.” Daniel looks at his badge and grins. It says he is from Brazil. “The coffee smells Brazilian,” he says, lifting his paper cup, “but I’m not. I’m Irish.”

The printer suddenly stops. A yellow light flashes, and the room fills with a sharp beep. Sofia Costa, the workshop leader, opens the machine. Her fingers become black with ink. “The computer has mixed the profiles,” she says. “Orientation begins in twenty minutes.” Sofia is from Portugal, and she is Portuguese. She gives Carlos a list of names. Because the printer is broken, Carlos suggests a plan: “We can find every participant and correct the information together.” Yuki takes a green pen, Daniel carries the badges, and Sofia brings the list.

Part Three: The Profile Adventure

The four helpers move through the bright conference hall. Chairs scrape, phones ring, and people speak many languages. Carlos meets Amara Okafor beside a bowl of green apples. “Where are you from?” he asks. “I’m from Lagos, Nigeria. I’m Nigerian,” she answers. Her badge says Poland. Carlos crosses out the mistake. Yuki finds Tomas Novak near the elevator. “Where are you from?” she asks. “I’m from Brno, Czechia. I’m Czech.” His badge says that he is German. “You aren’t German,” Yuki says. Tomas smiles. “No, I’m not.”

Daniel meets Hana Kim by a window that smells of fresh rain. “Are you from Japan?” he asks. “No, I’m not,” Hana replies. “I’m from Busan, South Korea. I’m South Korean.” Daniel corrects her badge. At nine, Sofia starts the orientation. Carlos stands beside the large map and introduces the group: “This is Yuki. She’s from Japan. This is Daniel. He’s from Ireland. This is Sofia. She’s from Portugal.” The participants clap, and the repaired printer begins to hum. One final badge slides out: CARLOS VEGA — MEXICO — MEXICAN. Carlos pins it above his heart as rainwater shines like tiny flags on the windows.

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