academic/career short-term and long-term goals and how being hispanic has affected them.
The last time I visited Medellin, Colombia was the summer of 2011. The last couple of months had been very rough due to the divorce between my mom, and her ex-husband; her and I had a lot of worries on our minds, and we were scared for our future. After the divorce we decided to visit our family to take a break from all our worries back in Alaska. When we got there, we couldn't recognize the city, many new buildings had been built, and it seemed like the city was going through a major transformation. We hadn't been there since 2008 when we visited for a last time before moving to Anchorage. It seemed that the atmosphere of the city was one of change, and hope.
My uncles told me about how since we last visited the city had put millions into infrastructure improvement, and development; and that they had opened a new phase of the Metro Cable. The Metro Cable was a cable car like the ones used in ski resorts that allowed the people living in the mountains of the city to have easy, affordable, and safe transportation. I had never seen phase two and wanted to see it, so I asked them to take me. Later that week we finally went to the Metro Cable. It was beautiful, very clean, modern, and surprisingly organized. Everyone waited their turn, and was cordial to each other; it was impressive how the whole thing seemed like it was in a first world country. I thought that maybe as Colombians we were an inch away of eliminating the fundamental problems that had been part of our society for decades until we started going up the hill in the cable car.
What I saw nearly broke my heart. Although many houses seemed in better condition, and there were new soccer fields in which you could see the children of "el barrio" playing; there was still poverty everywhere, you could see all the maids of the rich people going up to their houses after working 12 hours straight to see their kids who couldn't go to school because they had to work as well to support the family. There were houses at the top of the mountain that had just a tarp as the roof and most likely didn't get clean water or power. Although the city seemed to be changing there was still a lack of opportunity that was astonishing, and that is when I realized how lucky I was in the United States. Although my mom and I did have some problems back in America because she wasn't making too much money, and it was just the two of us, we had everything we needed. That trip inspired me to try to help Colombia, and show the world how loving, caring, determined its people are and how successful they can be if the right opportunities are presented to them.
So I promised myself that I would do everything in my power to graduate with a 3.5 GPA or higher, and get a part time job, and do the best I could everyday at it. Then I would go to business school with a scholarship, and start my own real state investment company. Later in life I plan on starting a foundation that educates, and helps young people on their possibilities, and provides financial assistance to attend college down in Colombia because through education they will reach their full potential, and help the country as a whole.
The last time I visited Medellin, Colombia was the summer of 2011. The last couple of months had been very rough due to the divorce between my mom, and her ex-husband; her and I had a lot of worries on our minds, and we were scared for our future. After the divorce we decided to visit our family to take a break from all our worries back in Alaska. When we got there, we couldn't recognize the city, many new buildings had been built, and it seemed like the city was going through a major transformation. We hadn't been there since 2008 when we visited for a last time before moving to Anchorage. It seemed that the atmosphere of the city was one of change, and hope.
My uncles told me about how since we last visited the city had put millions into infrastructure improvement, and development; and that they had opened a new phase of the Metro Cable. The Metro Cable was a cable car like the ones used in ski resorts that allowed the people living in the mountains of the city to have easy, affordable, and safe transportation. I had never seen phase two and wanted to see it, so I asked them to take me. Later that week we finally went to the Metro Cable. It was beautiful, very clean, modern, and surprisingly organized. Everyone waited their turn, and was cordial to each other; it was impressive how the whole thing seemed like it was in a first world country. I thought that maybe as Colombians we were an inch away of eliminating the fundamental problems that had been part of our society for decades until we started going up the hill in the cable car.
What I saw nearly broke my heart. Although many houses seemed in better condition, and there were new soccer fields in which you could see the children of "el barrio" playing; there was still poverty everywhere, you could see all the maids of the rich people going up to their houses after working 12 hours straight to see their kids who couldn't go to school because they had to work as well to support the family. There were houses at the top of the mountain that had just a tarp as the roof and most likely didn't get clean water or power. Although the city seemed to be changing there was still a lack of opportunity that was astonishing, and that is when I realized how lucky I was in the United States. Although my mom and I did have some problems back in America because she wasn't making too much money, and it was just the two of us, we had everything we needed. That trip inspired me to try to help Colombia, and show the world how loving, caring, determined its people are and how successful they can be if the right opportunities are presented to them.
So I promised myself that I would do everything in my power to graduate with a 3.5 GPA or higher, and get a part time job, and do the best I could everyday at it. Then I would go to business school with a scholarship, and start my own real state investment company. Later in life I plan on starting a foundation that educates, and helps young people on their possibilities, and provides financial assistance to attend college down in Colombia because through education they will reach their full potential, and help the country as a whole.