On my way to Tijuana I remarked that I have not spent many St. Patrick's Days in the United States over the last ten years. Instead, the month of March often finds me leading some type of service or immersion trip in Central America. The work and the location has varied, and, by my count, I have lead well over 150 students to Mexico, El Salvador, Nicaragua, The Dominican Republican, and Jamaica. In all of those trips one thing has remind constant, my desire to show students a new perspective on our national immigration conversation.
C.G. Jung once stated that "my voice is but one voice, my experience a mere drop in the sea, my knowledge no greater than the visual field in a microscope, my mind's eye a mirror that reflects a small corner of the world."
I suppose that is what this labor has been all about for me. Pushing others, as well as myself, to expand our field of vision beyond what it has previously known. In experiencing the new and the unexplored we are forced to reconcile our own preconceptions and ignorance. I think about this trip and the number of students who have participated over the years. How many conversations have they had since leaving this place that have been influenced by their time here. How many hearts and minds have been changed because of their experiences? I'd like to think that the ripples continue to grow outward. Beyond boarders, past walls, and over fences...
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