Fair exchange

This is R. He lives in our tiny hamlet but yearns to be an astro-physicist. R knows that he needs to speak fluent English to succeed in his chosen career and he's trying to get into an anglophone International school nearby. So he comes to us to improve his English and, in exchange, he helps me in the garden. We talk the entire time on subjects from Bob Marley, RGB keyboards, how he feels about a lonesome dog that lives nearby and how he dislikes sport. I really hope he passes the first part of his entrance exam next week. I like to think of astro-physicists growing out of the boondocks.