Reflection Wall: Something good out of it

The hurricane "María" changed my life. At first, I thought that Puerto Rico that Puerto Rico could never suffer a natural disaster like "María". I didn't think that a country could survive so many days without electricity or water. This hurricane caused physical disasters to the environment and homes where my friends and family lived. This made me feel a lot of empathy. I wish I could've helped a lot of those people who were struggling in the hurricane, but I couldn't. I spent days listening to people on the radio asking for help. They discussed everything that had happened to their areas and what they had to do to survive this horrendous time. People got very sad and some got even in depression because of this natural disaster. The hurricane destroyed many homes, trees, cars, infrastructures, electrical posts and other objects that were in her way. It made the water levels rise causing floods. I saw how people's properties got destroyed and because of it, it ruined the emotional state of the people.

After “Maria's” trajectory, I started to see the real value of the things I have. For example, the water is used in so many ways and for so many situations that literally a human can’t live without it. In addition, the electricity is very important in a country, and more in this century where everything works with electrical power. Hospitals, restaurants, stores, supermarkets, the lights in the house and the traffic lights in the streets weren’t functioning after the hurricane. This places that people tend to attend daily, weren’t available to the public no more. I learned the real importance of communication, too after “María”. Without communication people couldn’t know who on the island needed help or how were they doing. This created a lot of discomfort and preoccupation to their families, and more to the people who needed the help. Additionally, I’ve realized that some people are very used to a life with all the perks of technological advances, but this type of people had problems during and after the hurricane. I learned so much with my parents about how to live without electricity that now, I’m ready for the next storm or hurricane. Another good thing is that I made a lot of friends in the neighborhood. When I went to play outside, I really had fun with them. I learned also how to cook and make many combinations with a tiny variety of food (especially, canned foods).

After the hurricane, I truly cared for the ones I love, and I was very grateful that they were okay. Every day, I tried to communicate with some of my friends, but some had signal and others didn’t. I wasn’t relaxed until I was able to reach them. In fact, I offered to help them in anything that they needed. This helped me develop my compassion because sometimes, I even helped people I didn’t know, and it felt good. The hurricane “María” was very tough on my country and its people. It made people lose their homes, cars, furniture, food, and even jobs. But we know how to get back up from this difficult moment and keep moving forward towards the stability that we had before. I believe that we can move forward and improve.