Overcoming Obstacles free essay sample

You only see obstacles and challenges when you take your eyes off the goal. In the story, â€Å"The First Crossing† the author Donald R. Gallo, introduces Marco as a teenage immigrant from Mexico who is on a journey to illegally cross the border into the United States. The story reveals all of the challenges Marco must face in order to successfully enter the United States. Like Marco, I have faced challenges of my own in order to accomplish my goal of graduating high school and continuing on to college. For both Marco and myself, the challenges we’ve faced have helped us discover who we truly are. While trying to reach our goal, we both had numerous attempts; these attempts only gave us more experience and a better way to reach our goal. Not everyone has the right to equal freedom and opportunity. In a result of this, people will do whatever it takes to receive these rights, even if that means putting their own lives in danger. We will write a custom essay sample on Overcoming Obstacles or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Marcos’ father had been attempting to cross the United States border illegally for years, and decided it was now Marcos turn to take the risk with him. Although Marco wanted to leave Mexico and start on a new chapter of his life in America, he realized there were many dangerous possibilities that awaited him on his journey. However, the fear of getting lost, being bitten by snakes and scorpions, and getting caught, still wasn’t enough to convince Marco to not go. Marco and his father were caught several times before they successfully entered America. On the final try, Marco was squished into a sofa that was put in the back of a Car by a coyote (the people who smuggle immigrants in and out of America). His father, who was smuggled in before Marco, greeted his son in America. Getting to America was only half the battle for Marco and his father. Although they will both have to find jobs that will pay rent and put food on the table, the benefits of getting to America outweighed any of the negative possibilities of the journey. Every goal has a challenge but once you overcome those challenges, the world can only get bigger. Graduating high school and going to college has always been a very important goal I have always wanted to achieve. While trying to achieve my goal, I also faced many challenges. Like Marco, I had ‘snakes and scorpions’ in my way, the only thing is, these snakes and scorpions were people and temptations. A lot of people I hung out with didn’t have the same ambitions as me. They chose partying, hanging out late, smoking and ditching school over schoolwork. At times these temptations became favorable, and I decided to join in on a lot of activities they chose to do. I began to notice my grades were suffering due to my bad decisions and before it was too late, I realized that in order to live a successful life, I needed to get back on track. I began doing all of my schoolwork, and even got two jobs. Doing the right thing does get hard at times, and there are moments when I want to go back to my old ways, but then I remember that my future is more important than temporary fun. If Marco and I ever took the time to look back instead of ahead, we would not be where we are now. We both saw the challenges we had to face and we failed a couple of times, but the better life we pictured ahead of us is what we used as motivation. Instead of giving up because of the numerous failed attempts, we decided to keep trying and believed in the little faith that was left. Now that our goals have been reached, we can let out a sigh of relief and say that our lives are a whole lot better.