Personal Narrative: My Journey To Guatemala

My parents have always raised me to be grateful for what I have. I live in a safe and wealthy town with a superior education system, I have amazing friends and family, a roof over my head, and proper food and clothing.

When I was 4 years old, my mother decided to send me and my siblings to live with our grandparents in Honduras. I was born in Long Beach, CA, USA, however, my mother was struggling to give us a better life working as a housekeeper, and it wasn’t until I was 12 years old that we were reunited in New York. Nevertheless, my mother’s sacrifice to send my siblings and me to her country was indeed positive; hence, today am bilingual and have respect for diversity.

I remember my first time going to El Salvador at ten. It was like stepping into a new world. The way people lived was completely different than what I was used to. The food, language, houses, and even the people were dissimilar to me. To say the least in the beginning I wasn't happy to be in such a “filthy” and “dreadful” place. My first night there I shared the bed with my mom a fly net surrounding us. A rooster kindly woke us up at 6:00 a.m. and to my surprise everyone was already awake having started their day long ago. My grandparents were sitting having eggs, beans, and tortillas and I remember asking myself what kind of breakfast food that was. My aunt was down at the chicken coop grabbing fresh eggs for us and I quickly realized I was going to be eating the same thing. My mom took my brother and I to this strange place for two months and at the time I was wondering if everyday

The classic saying, “There’s always someone who has it worse than you” (Shaggy- Keepin’ it Real), didn’t come true to me until I had first-hand experience. As a child, I grew up in the lower middle class. So I wasn’t rich nor super poor. My mother came to the United States from El Salvador in the 1980’s. She has never taken my brother and me to her home country.

My trip to a third world country opened my eyes to see that everyone is not as blessed as we are here in America. Nicaragua is a very poor country. People in Nicaragua are robbed of the luxuries we Americans have. Such as, simply, having three meals a day. Most people have to travel far just to find food to bring home to their families. I felt like God had called me to go to these people not so I can bless them, yet so they can bless me and my eyes would be opened.

Guatemala was an unforgettable moment. Originally, the plan was to go to France and Italy, but unfortunately It was not safe because of the Isis threats/attacks. There were two options given that would replace the France and Italy Spring Term Trip. The first option was to go to Canada with most of the same group of people that were supposed to go to France and Italy. The Other option was to go to Guatemala, but they only had 3 spots available and it would be hard to get in as a sophomore (Senior priority). As a family, it was decided to try to go to Guatemala because of some of the stories from last year sounded amazing and that the kids there were inspiring. It was such a blessing to see the impact that was left on the kids, teachers,

My parents are unable to care for me because they are not in this country they are in Guatemala. They can to provide for me in Guatemala because we are financially unstable. My father is in charge of providing for the family, his occupation is farm work. My mother cannot get a job since in Guatemala there is not a lot of job opportunities and she has to take care of our home. To be able to further my education I would have to have to be financially stable, but we are not able to do that since I am not an only child. I have siblings that need the care and attention as myself. Where I live it is known for the violence that has been going on. There is no respect for one another. The gang violence has increased throughout the years. When recruiting

They say home is where the heart is and I’ve found out to be very true last year. I stayed in Palacagüina, Nicaragua for three months with an absolutely wonderful family with four of my friends. The five hour bus ride up to the dry dusty Nicaraguan mountains made me think this was quite an uneventful place. Don’t get me wrong.. Palacagüina is quite a boring place but the people there are so real and so truly amazing and it brings so much light to that city. Nicaragua has a way of making everything brighter. As soon as we met our family we were staying with they made us feel right at home and apart of their family. They started loving on us like my parents or any of my family would, which was so comforting.

Going to Guatemala has changed many of my perspectives of life. I live in a big, flagstone house, in a peaceful neighborhood in Anderson, Indiana. I grew up knowing how blessed and privileged I was, but I did not know the extent. I was so excited to go to Guatemala, travel out of the country, and experience all the amazing

It was the last day of my trip, and while I was washing plates in my grandmother’s house, the sunlight was reflected on the plates to my eyes. The fear going through my veins, my mind confused with everything that have happened two weeks ago. Uncertainty of what event would destroy or rebuild my heart. What would happen next ?. The future is unpredictable, so far that is a concept that now I understand. Considering the time spent in my country Colombia , vacations, friends, and parties were the words that stay on my mind for the first two weeks, otherwise the next two weeks were not what I planned. Firstable I was not supposed to be there for these last two weeks, but I am grateful. “No puedes viajar hoy” were the words asserted by the airline

I have come to associate myself with the identity of an American Hispanic. When I was young, I never thought of my identity. I always thought everyone was equal and there were no distinct ways to stereotype a person. An event that helped me realize my identity was a trip to Venezuela where my family is from. Even though I was born in the United States, I met several different family members on this trip and saw so many different cultural views and sites that I had not seen in the US. In Venezuela, everyone speaks Spanish, and there were so many different types of foods like “Arepas,” which is a type of food made of ground maize dough, a staple where I’m from.

Moving to a new country is very difficult for every person, even more, if it does not have anything in common with your origin country. Crossing borders, taking airplanes, and risking your life can become part of the immigration process. In this essay, I am going to explain the history of how I get out of Cuba. Also, I will be explaining how I reached this country. It was hard, but not impossible, and it was paid off already.

From the moment I set foot outside San Jose Airport, I knew this trip to Costa Rica would be an amazing experience. Mountains which surrounds the airport was breathtaking and signaled the great experienced that was in stored for us. Our tour guide Daniel was very helpful and explained in vivid detail about the surroundings. The environment resembled very much about my home country Sri Lanka, and it gave me an overwhelming feel of happiness, almost like I came back home. I was feeling a little sad because my roommate Shannon missed her flight, but on the way to the hotel, Dr. Rhodd announced that she would luckily be joining us the next day.

“Melissa, don’t you want to experience a whole new culture? Guatemala has one of the most beautiful resorts in the world--hell, you can even the stars in the sky unlike here!” my step dad exclaimed, his hands gliding in the air in excitement.

Much to my surprise, it had not taken a lot to convince my dad to let me tag along on a mission trip to Guatemala with him. The company my dad worked for, Family Christian Stores, held multiple mission trips each year to various locations. My dad had already been to Mexico, and was assigned to a group going to Guatemala next. Upon learning that I wanted to go, he assured me that it would not be a trip full of sightseeing or activities, but rather a time to give back to a community in need. After promising that I understood the hard work that would be involved, my dad agreed to let me