Weekly Reflection, Raction, and Response (RR&R) on Affecting Change

"Ahh! Ahhhh! Ahhh!" a desperate, panicked voice screamed forty feet below near the ocean-cured rocks.  Yet as Lisa talked about our week at Project WOO, and we shared snapshots of our experiences on community surf day, the stranger's screams were subdued to a mere drone in the periphery of my consciousness. When Lisa registered there might be someone calling for help, I did not understand how grave the girl's situation was until I looked down onto the rocks embedded in the ocean below and saw her precariously close to the rocks and the crashing, potent waves. Then Lisa, Derek (WOO workers) and TTS teachers rushed to help her and I merely watched, aware that I don't know how to help her and feeling fear, not bravery to help. This moment was intense and scary. Watching the approaching waves, fear rose in me. Fear for the girl getting twisted and hitting the unforgiving rocks. It also conjured up fear by reminding me of my moment of ocean stress when I lost my surf board in the far out waves at El Paredon. I felt an overwhelming feeling of sad helplessness too.  When I was struggling, I assumed anyone would help me as Heather and Henry did. Since anyone could fall into my position, others would empathize and as a good Samaritan, help me. Although I now empathized deeply, I did not feel readily able to help. I also felt a separation from Karen, being safe on land.

As I heard the desperate cries but did not recognize them as urgent; it is commonplace for people to know of the plight of others but not fully acknowledge it and care.  It is also common for people to be fully aware of the plight empathize but still feel a degree of separation and this not fully empathize and take action.

My metaphorical realization helped shed light on why so many US world citizens can take no action to preserve the natural state of our planet or help with the plight here in Central America.  Especially when our degraded earth and the Central American struggles are, in part, our fault.  I have been hyper-aware of environmental issues; I think partially because the state of our globe affects me.  But prior to TTS, I have not known or cared fully about the hardships here.  Traveling through Guatemala, Chiapas and Nicaragua and learning and interacting with the people, however, have bestowed me with a deep empathizing connection.

Now, I want to help and make a change, but just as I felt overlooking the ocean, I am not sure how.  It is not that it is too scary and potentially lethal, I just need to think more about it.  As we have learned, it is difficult to affect real change at the root of a problem and not merely the symptoms.  Yet I think this experience also makes me more understanding of why people at home will not feel as impassioned as I do;  they have maybe heard the drone of calls for help but never witnessed the issue firsthand.     

--Anna, Senior, NY