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Carlos Cruz

Dr. James Martin

Entrepreneurial Development in Honduras

24 April 2016

Reflection Assignment

Immersion experiences are something that I have been going on ever since I was a child.

Every time I have the chance to go on such journeys, something always ends up making a

permanent impression or effect on me. Specifically on this trip to Honduras, I was able to

experience the typical lifestyle of young adults, children, and adults. The little things make all

the difference for the people around the world, especially those in poorer communities. Honduras

was no joke when it came down to noticing it. It had be reflect on what I did in a normal week in

the United States.

1. Work - 50%

2. School - 30%

3. LASA - 10%

4. Rest - 10%

Above is a rough estimation on what I typically do in a weeks time. Work and school

take up a huge amount of time in my life. LASA, my student organization takes up the rest of

free time. Resting accounts for sleeping at night. My life is very busy, but nowhere near as

strenuous as the tasks people in Honduras must complete such as walking miles to school,

working in the fields in the beating hot sun without fair working conditions, etc.

Funds are something I have to manage every month.

1. Rent
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2. Bills

3. Car

4. Entertainment

Rent is fairly expensive for what I am paid. Monthly utilities take up the rest of the funds

I may have. Any funds saved is used for transportation since I drive around a lot and also go

back to Lorain a fair amount of time due to the fact my parents live there. Entertainment of

course comes in last because I barely have the time to even consider entertainment. But when

there is an opportunity, I am sure to take it.

Relationships are something I really value. Whether they are romantic, professional,

casual, all of them affect me because I consider relationships to be something to help me grow. I

love counting on romantic relationships. Its something that pushes me harder than ever. I love

workings towards goals that will ultimately make me a better man for my significant other. She

deserves the world, but in order for me to do that I need to be the best me I can be in order to do

that for her.

I have certain priorities in my life that I consider something to influence me to be the best

I can be. Family, school, love, making a difference, and teaching are all very important priorities

for me. Considering putting all the of the lists together, my life seems pretty ideal for what I

expected. I am not perfect, but I am also humble and grateful for where I am. I know that I am

on a constant uphill battle for my priorities and goals, but I will not give up on them. Id love for

my life to be a lot more organized, but ideally, nothing is perfect and I want to work towards

organizing it myself.

Getting in a car crash during the summertime gave me a sense of hopelessness. Funds

were completely erased and left me broke for a very long time. I was hungry, lost, but at the
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same time I was grateful to be alive. It gave me a sense keyword is sense of life at the

margin. After visiting Honduras as a college student, I was able to really ingest the motive of the

people and really recognize the beauty of such a community. Its truly inspiring. Experiences in

Honduras really had a strong affect on me. Working with 360 students at the same time with a

team who primarily doesnt really know Spanish was extremely honorable and scary to be a part

of. Thats just the least of it though. Being able to make a change in someones life is something

I always strive to do.

No matter what, I want to be able to be someones inspiration. The beauty was in

everything around the group. The smiles, laughter, tears, music, emotion, all of it was beautiful

in its very own way because of the fact that every thing that has spawned from specific events

made a change in every person involved. Throughout the week we felt the entire spectrum of

feelings such as angst, stress, happiness, sadness, bittersweetness, etc. In the beginning we were

all taken for a ride as we taught all 360 of those kids when we only expected around 100.

Multiple students were scared because of the fact that they have never even been outside of the

country before so working at a school and expecting to speak Spanish was a very large task for

some. While the fear was understandable, I felt like a I had to lead the group to a sense of

understanding that it is okay to be scared but we must try to carry out the mission. As people

were really worried about what to do with our lessons plans I worked along side those who were

a little more confident than the rest and got the day started. I really enjoyed working with a big

group setting because it gives an experience that we are able to handle any challenge we just

have to adapt to our surroundings. Taking on the responsibility of leading people felt really good

and in the end became good practice for my leadership opportunities back here in the States.

Getting to know the children in Honduras was a moving experience for me because of the fact
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that I got to familiarize myself to a lifestyle my parents have always described to me. I learned to

really appreciate the small things in life just like every other time I visited a country in Central

America. It just kind of gets me a little uncomfortable because I feel like I constantly have to be

put into perspective with whats outside of our own borders. But even though I feel

uncomfortable with the fact that I need to be reminded, it fuels me to help remind others on what

life is like on the other side.

Originally, going down to Honduras felt very familiar to what I was already used to by

going to El Salvador. It was hot, crowded, muggy (because of the fact that we were sitting on

planes for several hours), really encompassing the elements of traveling to a third world country

below the southern border. A feeling of peace overcame me as we walked out of our terminal in

Honduras. At first its always hard to discern what the peaceful feeling really means but it

always makes itself apparent to me when I look at the people. When walking outside of the

airport and seeing the different lifestyles blatantly segregated in the city, I knew that this was not

a typical trip. Traveling down to these countries never has been just a trip, it has always been for

a greater purpose. When going to Honduras yeah it was focused on entrepreneurial

development (the class title) but its deeper than that. We were representatives of our own beliefs

working for the values we integrate into our lifestyles so that we can share the gift of generosity

with others. Some people went down with the intention of gaining business knowledge, the

component of developing business plans for the Casa Noble boys would allow people with that

certain intention to carry out their purpose. Others went down with the intention of helping out

children and families, to learn of the injustices of Honduras, and to find a way to actually do

something about it. The part of the trip where we went to visit the villages of Naguara and Flor

Azul to drop off care packages for the schools would allow people with a social justice motive to
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fulfill their purpose. With me, I felt like I had a little different reason why I decided to take on

such an adventure. I always lived life by the line of no story is more unique than your own, and

every story has a right to be heard. Growing up, being the son of two Salvadoran immigrants,

Ive heard my parents story multiple times that it became an integral part of why I decide to

wake up every morning. The average life of an immigrant coming from Mexican and/or Central

American backgrounds is extremely ridden with violent memories whether it involves war,

drugs, or poverty. Ive heard many things about what my parents and their friends and family had

to go through, it was hard for me to even believe it was all true. I even need a reminder at times

that I am privileged to be born in the United States. But in order to truly remember that I am,

going down to the country my parents are from helps me align with the memories my parents

carry in their heads every single day. Going to Honduras allows me to learn of new stories, and

allows me to tell them in my very own way. This all ties into a defining moment in my life that

would help me decide what path I want to take towards my identity.

On my trip to El Salvador about 5 years ago, I toured the Universidad Centroamericana

(UCA). At UCA, Monsignor Oscar Romero had heavy influence. Even across the country,

Romero had a huge influence on what went on during times of war. He fought for peace between

the high class, military, and politicians and the lower class, farmers, and peasants. Romero called

for a complete eradication of violence because of the fact that Salvadorans were killing

Salvadorans. He conducted peaceful marches and rallies for the people of El Salvador and risked

death every single day in order to help those in need. He was basically the Martin Luther King of

El Salvador. Romero was assassinated at a church near UCA. Because of this, UCA has a

memorial dedicated to his work and influence. On the wall, there is a quote that really made a

connection with me: If I am killed, I shall rise again in the Salvadoran people. When I read that
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quote, I knew that I had to dedicate my life to helping other in any way possible in whatever I

end up doing.

I am a believer in God. The experience I had in El Salvador has a direct link to what I do

every day with the work I do for my cultural organization and even when I go abroad. Going

down to Honduras, I knew I had to do something important and leave a lasting impression of

hope for the children. When it comes to God and experiences, I dont believe hes a puppeteer.

He doesnt control us, rather He gives us opportunities to do good things here on Earth. I dont

really like diving deep into religious topics due to some experiences Ive had before John

Carroll, but I do acknowledge His existence and what he desires from us.

Life at the margin is something that was always made apparent to me ever since I was a

child. My parents always told me of the hardships they had to go through growing up in a war

torn society filled with poverty, violence, and unsanitary conditions. Their struggle is something

I carry with me with everything that I do. Going down to Honduras, I was given a different

perspective of that Central American struggle. A perspective of the youth and poverty, it was like

I was walking the streets similar to what my parents walked in El Salvador. Learning the stories

of the Casa Noble boys allowed me to see how they cope with the pain, yet see how they make

the best of what they have every single day.

When it comes to what I want to change it makes me want to change how things are

handled here in the United States when it comes to social justice issues or even basic awareness

of injustices in pretty much everything. Ever since we came back to the United States I guess

you can say I became a little obsessed with this task. Ive been extremely involved with my

cultural organization, the Latin American Student Association, working to organize protests, plan

events, build awareness of our names, and build awareness for people who need help in todays
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society. Seeing how things are in Honduras help me understand even more about immigration to

the United States, legal or illegal. I have built an increased empathy for the journeys people take

to escape such a lifestyle just to have a better life for themselves and/or their children. A fire

started in my heart where I will not stop if someone needs help. Managing on when to tender fire

is what I definitely need to work on though. While it is important to help others, I need to help

myself.

This entire trip was a story to tell for a lifetime. I met so many new people and built

bonds with classmates that I thought I would never even speak to. Going down to Honduras you

get a real life example on life across the southern United States border. Children, adolescents,

and even adults everyone makes the best of what they have down there. Whats amazing to

learn though are basic life skills we learn here in the United States such as leadership, life

planning, goals, etc. arent really valued in Honduras because of the limited choices of careers

available for people. Death at a young age is something widespread in Honduras and the scarier

part is that the children know it. With all of this information, you learn a valuable skill to never

stop pushing for what you believe in. You combine business aspects of leadership, planning,

goals, marketing, financing, all of those elements with a social justice lens and you learn to do an

amazing thing. You learn to teach to change lives. Youre teaching to make a change in these

childrens lives to give them a step ahead of everyone else so that they have the hope to make a

difference. Even if their chances of survival arent increased a substantial amount, you still did

something no one else was able to do for them. You learn to be selfless with what you teach

because youre not just teaching to give information, youre teaching these skills to actually

make a massive change in a childs life. Youre teaching to make a difference.