Thursday, July 19, 2012

Update #1 from Summer Intern Michael

7/6/12
It is my first day in Ecuador. The flight was very long because we had three layovers. We went from LAX to San Salvador then proceeded to Costa Rica. From there we went to Quito, then to Ecuador, and finally one more short flight to Guayaquil. I am so excited to be able to have this opportunity. A year ago I never would have imagined being on a different continent. I am still unsure of what I want to do in the future. Currently, I am a business student at St John’s University. My father told me it was the most practical major because there is business in every aspect of life; this is why I choose Business. I am learning new things while studying in college, but the one thing I never want to let go of is helping others. If I can do one thing in my life it is to make a difference in other people’s lives for the better. Most of the times I prefer to work with kids because they are not at fault for the situations they have been put in, so if they are willing to work hard and strive they should be eligible for the same opportunities other children have. This internship is the perfect opportunity for me to reach out past my boundaries and discover myself while helping people in the process. I am also very nervous for the internship because unfortunately I don’t speak Spanish. I have been around Spanish all my life, most of my family and my parents speak the language fluently but I didn’t learn it. Right now I have a basic understanding of Spanish, I am confident I can understand most of it but I am not that good at speaking it. I feel this will be the greatest challenge for me because without knowing the language I won’t really be able to connect to the kids as much as I want to. Fortunately my brother is fluent in Spanish and he will be able to translate. I am sure at first it will be a challenge but along with these amazing kids my brother has told me so much about we will bypass this obstacle. Since I don’t know Spanish I have been questioning the way I am going to help the program. I am really good at interacting with children so that should work to my advantage. We are also going to implement a Photography program that I am excited for. I believe this is where I can contribute the most because I have been reading up on photography and although I am a beginner I am sure we can get this program off the ground with these kids. 

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