Temporary Happiness

Personally, I liked the second half of the novel more than the first. I think the relationship that forms between Enrique and his mother is one of the most intriguing relationships in the novel.  Alongside Enrique, the readers discovered the problems that come with building a strong mother to son relationship. I came to the conclusion that Enrique perfectly examples how fantasizing about a destination can lead to a harsh fall when reality hits.

Since Enrique has been fantasizing about meeting his mother for so long, their reuniting wasn’t all it cracked up to be. In the beginning, Enrique and his mother worked on building a strong relationship: “Whenever he leaves the house, she hugs him. When she comes home from work, they sit on the couch, watching her favorite soap opera, with her hand resting on his arm” (Nazario 194). After he got to experience how a true family interacts for a while, Enrique became frustrated and turns to bad decisions to cope. I think the initial excitement and joy overshadowed the hidden problems that were still left to deal with between Enrique and his mother. After the initial “honeymoon” phase ended, unsolved conflicts and emotions were all that was left to remain. 

State Police

Ever since I was a child I have always looked up to policemen as being the “good guys” because they lay down the law and keep our country safe. It has never occurred to me that in some countries the police are the enemies.  However, in the book church members try and support the migrants, giving them food and a place to sleep for days or sometimes even months. Migrants feared that the state police would come and arrest them, sending them back home where they came from. Julio Cesar Trujilo Velasquez, a spokesman for the Diocese of Orizaba says, “State police would beat migrants, sometimes take their money, and then throw them into the back of their trucks” (Nazario 112) Church members began holding public protest outside the local hospital because, “the migrant claimed that a police officer had pushed him toward the train…” (112). The police were deporting the migrant even though he had just lost his leg and was unable to walk. Protesters screamed, “We want justice!” (112).

I have never experienced anything like what these kids and adults have gone through, but admire their courage and bravery greatly. Enrique’s Journey has really showed me the difference in police systems and how problems are gone about. The question I’ve been asking myself throughout this book is: why has nothing been done about this huge problem? And another question I have is: Why are gangs such a bigger issue in central America than in North America?

Ignorance is Bliss

María Isabel is very fond of her only child Jasmín, and wants to protect her. She wishes to give Jasmín the best childhood she can even with limited resources. One of those resources being money. María Isabel and her family are very short on money much like many of the other families living in that area of Honduras. Nazario narrates, "She carries Jasmín in her arms to the city's central plaza, where children beg with outstretched arms. She takes her into the cathedral, up to the gilded altar. She prays. She asks that Jasmín not get sick, that Enrique stay away from drugs. Then she takes Jasmín for a scoop of ice cream" (Nazario 225). I wonder if Jasmín, even at her young age, realizes their financially situation. Does she only see the ice cream being given to her after a day out with her mother, or does she realize that she is luckier than the children that are forced to beg at the plaza? My question is, if you had a child and were struggling financially, would you make it seem like there was nothing wrong, or tell your child the truth about what is going on so it isn't a surprise later in their life?

The Meaning of Family

According to Dictionary.com the word family means: a basic social unit consisting of parents and their children, consideredas a group, whether dwelling together or not. In reality though, family means so much more than this. They are truly our biggest supporters and love us unconditionally. Although important to many, family is especially important to these illegal immigrants, because they don’t have anything else. Families, like Enrique’s, are so poor they don’t have shoes, or enough money to feed the family. In times of struggle like this, you lean on your family for support and hope. But what happens when moms and dads feel compelled to leave and go work in the United States? Then their children and other family members are left with nothing but hope that they will return soon. The separation is the initial cause of why so many new families are created. For instance, Lourdes has another child in the U.S., Enrique gets Maria Isabel pregnant, and Enrique’s dad finds another girlfriend. Ultimately this causes complexity within the lives of migrants because they eventually feel compelled to return to their original family and integrate their new families with their old. Migrants must blend in, which is why they learn how to speak and sometimes dress like the people in cities they are passing through. Although, “Migrants are easy to spot. They wear dirty clothes and smell bad after days or weeks without bathing. Often, they have no socks. Their shoes are battered. They have been bitten by mosquitoes. They look exhausted” (Nazario98). The dedication these illegal immigrants have to their families never fails to amaze me. What role does family play in your life? And would you be willing to embark on this dangerous journey to be reunited with your family?

Hard Decisions

     In the novel Enrique's Journey by Sonia Nazario hard decisions are inevitable. For example, Enrique's girlfriend, Maria Isabel, had to make the decision to leave her daughter Jasmin in Honduras, so that she could go work in the United States providing a better life for her daughter. This decision was not made easily or quickly, for it took a lot of persuading by Enrique "Together we will provide her a better life"(Nazario 237). In the end Maria Isabel was so upset she left without even saying goodbye. Some could argue that her decision was not the right thing, and others could argue that it was. Making decisions is only hard because there are pros and cons to each side. If there was a clear answer then it would not be a hard choice. For Maria Isabel, leaving her daughter without a mother might not have been the best choice, yet at the same time she is providing much more for her daughter then she could have if she was there for her.

    I tried to think of a time in my life where I made a hard decision, but none of them even came close to the one that Maria Isabel made. Only one situation comes to mind when I think of hard decisions, and that is when I said goodbye to my grandmother. My grandmother had been sick with cancer for a long time, but last Christmas she got extremely ill. Some people are very scared to say goodbye to a loved one when they are sick, but I knew I would regret it if I did not say goodbye one last time. Although it was hard, I had to make the decision because if I had not said goodbye I would have regretted it for the rest of my life. Have you ever made a hard decision?

Love

Bitsy Pendleton

I enjoyed the second half of the book more than the first simply because Enrique finds his mother. At the end of the book, the talk show host asks Enrique if it was worth receiving money but remaining mom less. If any child were asked if they would rather have their mom than money I can guarantee the answer would be yes, at least that is the case for Enrique. Enrique practically moved mountains to be with his mom. This part of the book really made me think what life would be like without my mom, and what extents I would go to for a chance to live with her again.

Enrique finding his mom is my favorite part of the book because the voyage is unbearable, the nights are longer than normal, and people are not friends, yet Enrique kept trying to find his mom. The integrity he had to not try one time, but multiple times to be able to find his mom is amazing. The amount of love Enrique has for Lourdes is very special, special enough for Enrique to complete his journey. Also I like how Lourdes and Enrique’s relationship is so strong, Enrique moves back to Florida. He loves his mom very much and Enrique would be genuinely lost if he had not found her. Do you think Enrique and Lourdes relationship is this close because Enrique had to make this journey, or do you think they would be this close if Lourdes hadn't of moved.

Lost in Loneliness

   
       Several times throughout the novel, Enrique expresses his desire to fill the void his mother left in his childhood. Ultimately, this need for motherly love prompts Enrique to depart on his journey northward. Upon his reunion with Lourdes, Enrique is immediately overcome with joy that lasts him all but two months until once again loneliness catches up to him. He has now become the parent that  left a family in Honduras, and he becomes painfully aware of the improbability of being able to return to Maria Isabel and their daughter shortly. This desolation overwhelms him, pushing him into the mix of drug and alcohol addictions, and he again returns to blaming for his mother for not being home to raise him properly.

        Two and a half years later, Enrique decides to make change in his lifestyle: "He wants to look better when Maria Isabel comes to the United States. More importantly, he has to be more responsible for Jasmin" (Nazario 217). The prospect of his family being able to join him in the near future motivates Enrique to leave behind his indulgences and bad habits, and instead work to become the father and husband that his family so desperately needs. In this, the solitude that he was once lost in is now replaced by the hope for a united family. Has there ever been a time when loneliness has made you do things you wouldn't otherwise have done? When have you worked harder for the sake of others?