My Hero

One of the utmost role models in my life is my dad. He’s hardworking, dedicated, caring, and has always wanted the best for us—my sister Randa and I. In my eyes, he’s practically superman without the cape. Of course he has some weaknesses, but there’s mainly nothing that can bring him down. Personally, I have experienced one of his courageous acts.
It was school vacations and my sister and I were bored to death. We were just flipping through the channels trying to find something interesting. We were finally going to give up when, suddenly, my parents entered the room with a big surprise, “We’re going to Garmisch!” I was so thrilled and couldn’t wait to visit this place I had never been to.

When we arrived, we settled at the campground we were staying and went to this little amusement park. We were going on the last ride, which was like a little rollercoaster--except you rode in your own little cart that you could control with a stick. I wanted to go in the first cart and I kept insisting, but in the end my dad won. So my dad went first, I went second, and Randa went third. We went up the hill and started descending one at a time. When it was my turn, I pushed the stick which sent my cart racing down the tracks. I didn’t really realize that I was the one in control of the cart, and I became kind of nervous. Instead of pulling the stick to slow down, I pushed it even further. The cart was going so fast, and I was freaking out, that I didn’t realize there was a “speed bump” to stop the cart--probably to prevent accidents for people like me who don’t react well in these types of situations. Well, I had to be the exception. My cart slammed against the “speed bump” and I went flying in the air, literally. Thankfully, my dad was at the front. He was the only obstacle that prevented me from smashing into the lot of empty carts that were to follow.

It was a terrifying experience. I remember my mom dropping the camera and running towards me while I was hanging in my dad’s arms, limp and in shock. I know it seems unrealistic, one of those experiences that only happens in movies, but it happened to me. At first I didn’t feel any pain. I actually thought I was unharmed from the incident I had just experienced, but then I moved and proved myself wrong. My whole chest and right arm were red and throbbing in pain. I was laid on the ground, while my mom checked me to see if I had any broken bones. I was sent to the hospital, which coincidently was only 2 minutes away, and was found to have a broken wrist.

I keep thinking how different things would have been if I would have been in the first cart. As I said in my previous essay, things happen for a reason. Thanks to my dad, who was there at the right time, at the right moment, and at the right place, I only broke my wrist and nothing more severe happened to me. It’s funny how so many people say “You are my hero” or “You saved my life” for little favors someone does. But now I can truly say that my dad is my hero.

Willkommen in Deutschland

“Fünf brötchen bitte.” My mom, dad, Randa and I were ordering bread in a little bakery in Wetzlar. We were in a little town called Altsatdt, in Germany, located about 50 kilometers from Frankfurt. That little bakery was our frequent stop and what I remember most while exploring the town. This old village was full of historic discoveries and was perfect to walk through to see the German culture. I loved walking on the bridge through the Lahn River on our way to get Italian ice cream or walking on the cobblestone streets looking at the houses, stores, and people passing by. We would go next to the Wetzlar Cathedral, on Sundays, to a small Spanish speaking church in the town. Randa and I were the altar girls and we’d bring the wine and holy bread, stand beside the priest and collect the offerings. Later we would go to the little markets they had in town and afterward eat gyros, bratwurst, or super-sized pretzels with salt. It was so unreal, now that I look back at it. Of course, since I was so little I didn’t realize how lucky I was to be in such a place, but I did enjoy it. Although this little town had so many things for you to discover and do, this was only a little part of what we enjoyed while living in Germany.

Castles were a great part of the tourist attractions we would go to. There are about 25,000 castles in Germany. I had never seen a real castle before, so as you could imagine I was very excited. The only castles I really remember visiting were the Neuschwanstein (which was the inspiration for Disneyland) and Heidelberg castle. They were huge and decades of history were kept within their walls, but since I was little all I could think about was: this would be a perfect place for playing hide and seek. Although, since it was packed with people and my parents didn’t want me to get lost, that was not an option. Besides the enormous dream-like castles, holidays were by far the best.

Nikolaustag(Christmas) and the Oktoberfest were celebrated at big, by big I mean, greater than anywhere I’ve ever been to. During Nikolaustag everything would be decorated at its best and there would be Christmas markets in every town. I had never seen anything like it; everyone went over the top to get ready for this holiday. It was so cheerful and beautiful, like one of those Christmas towns you only see in movies. You could smell the pastries being baked and see all the types of candies and toys being placed through the store’s windows. Even through all the coldness of winter, I could feel the warmth and happiness of people, and that was the most amazing thing of all. I remember going to Rothenberg to one of the many Christmas markets they had. There were endless stands with ornaments, food, games, and anything you could imagine for the holidays. The Oktoberfest was all about eating, games, dancing and drinking beer (which obviously I didn’t do.) There were tents with different varieties of food and little stages for dancing, although at the end it would be filled with kids jumping around and playing tag. Besides the holidays, everything was a great experience. I learned and did so many things I would have never known or done. I lived in Germany for three years and it is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to.

Everything happens for a reason

Anxious, terrified and full of adrenaline is all I can describe how I felt. It was awful just standing there, getting closer every minute. My heart was racing, my palms were sweaty and it felt like I had a huge pit in my stomach. I had goose bumps all over and wanted to just walk back to where I knew I would be safe and have no worries whatsoever--but I couldn’t. I guess you can call it pride or just the satisfaction of not backing out of something that you don’t get the chance to do every day; but I felt like I needed to do this. Everyone around me seemed either excited or calm or indifferent, as if they didn’t know what they were about to do. The description did say: “The fast and furious, head first, face down thrill with twists and upside-down turns.” I kept telling myself, “You’ve already been on a roller coaster before; there is nothing to worry about.” But it didn’t work.
It’s like when you are afraid even though you know it’s highly improbable something will happen and, in the end, you wished you had not been afraid at all. Well, this was one of those times and I was determined to prove it wrong. I was going to go on that ride no matter what, and nothing was going to happen to me. I was already standing in line and there was no turning back.
Despite my inner debate on whether to put my nerves aside or think about the worst things that could possibly happen, I was actually pretty distracted. The line was like a tour. While I waited to get on the monstrous 140 foot, 60 miles-per-hour Manta Roller Coaster, I got to walk through a huge underground aquarium full of string rays, sea dragons (which I never knew existed), and other creatures.
I almost forgot why I was there, since I was trying to look at all of the animals and at the same time figure out the different languages people were speaking. Suddenly, I heard people screaming and the roar from the roller coaster. I knew I was near. I could feel the vibration of the cart running along the tracks at full speed. I started to panic and was full of adrenaline again, and I wasn’t even on the rollercoaster yet. I could imagine getting pulled higher and higher, squeezing my Dad’s hand and gripping tightly on the bar holding me, while just seeing the sky and highest point of the roller coaster. I’d then drop down, feeling like I was going to fall out of my seat and my body feeling weightless, traveling so fast I couldn’t see and screaming at the top of my lungs. The line kept moving and I became more nervous than before; I started to think that I should have turned back, pride or no pride, it was just a ride.
I hesitated on whether I should turn back or just face this fear once and for all, but at the end I thought, I did wait an hour to get on this ride plus it’s just a ride. So I decided to stay and get it over with. I had backed out from the Kracken Roller Coaster which was actually worst than this one, I couldn’t do it again. Finally, when it was almost time for me to go on, I heard my salvation, my hero, and the excuse that saved me from my conflicting situation…Mr. Thunder. It started to rain, and there was plenty of lightning, there was no way they were going to let us go on the Manta. The line stopped moving and they announced that the ride was closed until the lightning and the rain had subsided.
Even though I didn’t confront my fear, I’m glad I had an excuse not to go on the roller coaster. I believe everything happens for a reason. I look back now and realize how I made such a nerve-wrecking and complicated situation out of something so small. Things are not meant to be sometimes, and I’ll just have to face my fears another day.

Just a part of who I am

There are many facts about me that not just anyone would know. I wouldn’t call them secrets, but they are important to find out. I believe it’s the little things in life that make a person who they are today. By little things I mean experiences, reactions, likes, dislikes and just one’s everyday life. All the little details about what or someone else does every day would reveal what makes us unique and what we have in common. All those tiny mistakes that make you far from perfect. It’s that, that defines you as a person, although of course, striving to be perfect in something doesn’t hurt. But don’t you think the world would be absolutely boring if everything was perfect? There would be nothing to correct, no space for errors, no differences, no spontaneity.
Talking about experiences and how that shapes a person; I would like to tell you something that has become part of me.
Ever since I was three years old, I have been doing taekwondo. At first I always took it as a joke. I would play around all the time while the others took it so seriously. Taekwondo is based on obedience, persistence, courage, and skills. They wouldn’t fool around because if you misbehaved then they would hit your hands with a paddle. We lived in Korea at the time, so I guess to Koreans it was pretty normal since no one complained about it, except my parents. I remember that my mom and dad had stayed for one of our classes to see what we would do, and then, when we – my sister and I – behaved badly, our instructor told us to lift our hands, palms up. The paddle hitting my hand hurt and I cried a lot. My parents were shocked and angry. Later, the instructors got the message that they couldn’t do that to us and we had to behave better. I think that made me more of a rebel and I just found another excuse not to listen to them. Of course, later on I began listening to the instructors, but I still had that rebellious side that would come out once in a while. Although this is not the experience I’m talking about, it sure did help me understand that I had to behave better and be respectful.
One day, when I was around 13 years old and living in Panama, I went to a Taekwondo competition. I was very nervous since it was my first time. When it was my turn, we stepped on the mat, shook hands, and waited for the bell to ring. At first I started with simple and soft kicks since I didn’t want to really hurt her, but then she started getting rough. I began to defend myself more and realized that she was winning when I looked the scoreboard. I started kicking her with all I got, and tried to kick her head (more points), or at least try to knock her down. I was excited and full of adrenaline when abruptly our knee’s crashed together. I was in a lot of pain and my knee was turning reddish-purple, while my rival was perfectly fine. I was going to be eliminated, but it was my first fight and I wasn’t prepared to lose. So I returned to the mat to finish the fight, which was almost over anyways. I lost, but mainly because I couldn’t really kick still, but I felt good that I didn’t quit. This experience showed me what I could have done better and what I shouldn’t do.
This experience taught me that I should listen to my instructors to improve my techniques and to do better next time. Staying the fight made me feel better about myself, even if I didn’t win. I knew I wasn’t a coward because I didn’t back out the instant I got hurt. I’ve learned to defend myself. Although, this is just a part of how it would be in a real fight.