In the first half of the story, Enrique
attempts to reach his mother in the United States a total of seven times, each attempt
resulting in Enrique being sent back to where he started. Enrique has faced
starvation, severe beatings, lack of sleep, and robbery. Despite all these
difficulties that bring him down, he continues to get up and try again. After
one of Enrique’s worst beatings in Los Ananos, he chooses to fight through the
pain and continue his journey. Unfortunately he is caught by an off-duty immigration
officer that turns him in to the migra. On the bus ride back home, “he tells
himself over and over that he’ll just have to try again” (Nazario 60). Enrique’s
determination to find his mother despite all the pain and fear he is put through
exemplifies the power of love. Enrique loves his mother so much that he is
willing to do just about anything to reach her. This desire for love once led
him to depression and drug use now powers and wills him to keep going. I
believe Enrique’s love for his mother is the powering force behind his journey.
Similar to Enrique, there have been many
times in my life when I have wanted something so badly that I was willing to
try again and again until I succeed. Although none of these times in my life have
been as extreme as Enrique’s journeys I can understand what it is like to fail
many times before achieving success, and the feeling of determination that comes
with each failure. Has there ever been a time in your life when you had to work
hard through trial and error to achieve your goal? What was standing in your
way? What motivated you to try again?
That is a great reflection Jordyn! I agree that Enrique's love for his mother drives him to keep pushing on through the toughest times of his journey. I know that after a while from trying and trying to achieve something a person can lose the drive to achieve the goal. Enrique proves to have a strong emotion of love that pushes him to see his mother after so long away from each other. I have found it increasingly hard to achieve a goal in a sport that I play and I figured out that I'm the one standing in my way. Unlike Enrique, I didn't think that I could ever achieve this goal. Once I proved to myself in a game what I am capable of doing, it made me push harder to make my best become a habit. Enrique is a role model for me in so many ways because he started this journey not knowing whether or not he would make it out alive, but his drive, I believe, was the reason he lived through it all.
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