In the year 1981, my mother was born in the civil war of El Salvador. She was Born in the city San Miguel, with a mother that made and sold clothing for a living. She grew up as the oldest of four siblings. As the eldest daughter, my mother had to ensure that her siblings were well fed and cared for. She made sure that none of her siblings went missing before or after school. She helped her mother with chores and work. The war in her country made her grow up faster than other children. She had to learn how to survive. Growing up, my mother has taught me how to survive in a country that shares no part of my culture and no part of my identity. Ishmael on the other hand, has taught me what happens like kids like my mom after violence in a war.
Just like mother, Ishmael had to suffer through self taught survival, hunger and trauma. When the war began, Ishmael had no idea what war would bring upon him and his life. Ishmael was a child, alone with no adult supervision. The only adults who he ever encountered wanted to hurt him. The outcome of such neglect taught Ishmael that war can rid of you so many things like your childhood. Ishmael was a young boy who learned that after any war, you need to take precaution of anyone you trust. Even if you knew them before any violence happened in your environment, violence and fear will change you. After reading Ishmaels testimony, I learned that you can be a totally different person than that who you are after something very traumatic. Taking things for granted is not the way you should live your life. I learned that after I realized the there were times where Ishmael didn’t have food, water, or a mother.
Ishmael lost his mother in a war. He didn’t know her whereabouts for months. I learned that I always wake up with my mother at home. She picks and drops me off from the school bus, and she is always by my side.One thing that I also learned from Ishmael is that I have my two sisters by my side. Ishmael lost his brother for a period of time, and that really affected him in such a bad way. His family was not the only one he lost, but he also lost his friends. One of his friends died in the the middle of the night after eating the only thing that was available for food, which was a damaged bird. This really affected Ishmael because he was just a small boy. He lost his friend, and it hurt him so much. He didn’t know how to cope with his death, as he cried with silent tears. Ishmael has taught me that the after affects of wars will always leave a scar. And not just one scar, but multiple scars. Some will fade, but other will open the deep wound that was once there. I have learned that i too, have experienced a war. My war is different from my mothers and Ishmaels, but the scars will still affect my after life decisions. Just like my mother had choices as well as Ishmael, I will have choices as well. I will have the choices to live and fight for my identity as a person, my will to live, and what motivates me to fight for my freedom. I know now, that freedom isn't free. Freedom is to be fought for. War is not something elegant that defies who my culture is. My mother, just like Ishmael are not violent people. They are the aftermath of war. My mother and Ishmael are the victims of war. And that is the most important thing i learned this summer. That victims of war who are granted the opportunity to live are warriors. People like them, are the reason counties like the ones I live in, lack information on survival. If I didn’t have a mother like the one I was blessed to have in my life, or if I never read the story of Ishmael, I would never have known what sacrifice is. Many people who are victims of the aftermath of war have sacrificed their personal freedoms. They have sacrificed innocence, purity, and their voice. After war, I learned that my mothers and Ishmaels voices were stolen from them. The only thing that is left is silence. People like Ishmael are only left with memories are feelings. They only have the lost thoughts of what could've happened if the war never took place in the first place.
War and the aftermaths of war is a finicky and soft topic to speak about. I learned from Ishmael that life is a precious gift. Life can be anything depending on what you make out of it. Life is a treasure that you must keep safe. Even if your life is not in danger anymore, it is still very important to keep safe. My life, has changed. I now have more wisdom than what I had a few weeks ago. You can be an adult and still be 100% innocent. Or you can be a child, and have 0% innocence. War can affect your brain in so many ways. War can cause you to have side effects of PTSD. War can also cause you to do things you never imagined you could do in the past. One last thing war could cause you to do is become the most humblest person you could have ever imagined. Before war, you could've been a genuine polite citizen in your country that never committed any crime, but after war, you could be a person who stabs everyone behind their back. You could be that person who is always cautious about the government and the environment around you. You can also be a person who did bad deeds before war who turned into a better after war. This could make you realize that after you've experienced war, you only have one chance to live the life you have. After all, you did live through a war right? These are some of the many more things I have learned from Ishmael.
No matter what obstacles I go through in my life, I know that I have to stay stronger and become stronger. Knowing that one day, my generation could be in the middle of a war, I have to strive for my will to live. I have learned that I have to cherish every second of life I have earned. Every breath I take is counted. And depending on how I choose to live my life, is the way I will succeed. I have the opportunity Ishmael and my mother never had at my age. I have the opportunity to grow as a person, help others in need, and absorb an education. The beforemaths and aftermaths of war is a critical time. I learned that I can be the future for my country that I grew up in. I have learned that there is more to life than just looking into the past thanks to Ishmael. Ishmael has taught me that I have to grateful for the things I have and the thing I don't have. I am thankful for having only a personal war, and not a National one. I am thankful for not having my innocence and my childhood stolen for me. I am grateful for having a voice, and not tape over my thoughts. I am independent.
If my mother were to read this book, she would have cried. She would know and feel exactly what Ishmael felt during his war time. She would tell me, that life after war is true life. She would tell me that Life after war is power. It is power because you beat the odds thousands of other people couldn't who were just like you. And the only difference was that you had luck. Even though my mother has not read Ishmael's story, she still knows his story through hers.My mother might have not told me how to live my life, but Ishmael has taught me something that’s special
. My life from now on will be lived with perseverance and integrity. It is my duty to serve my life, and the life of others.
Life will not be easy. But now Ishmael and my mother have provided a road to guide me in my journeys. I have been given a guide so I can follow to prevent war in the first place. Through the experiences of others, I will have the book of life right before my hands. This will help me become the person every country needs. What I have learned about the aftermath of violence that you can only like one day at a time. As a person , you have the control to choose what type of life you will have. If you choose to continue to live a violent life, or if you choose to live a happy one. Life will always come with its unique forms of challenges, but I choose to take these challenges.
In chapter one, It is explained that Ishmael is a young boy who does what typical boys do in his area. The difference is that he loves rap music. He finds such a passion and interest to the fast words that his favorite rappers say. It makes his feel comfortable knowing that he has a style, a personality, and he’s comfortable in his own skin. However, music is taken away from him in chapter 1. He has to forget about all the Dances, music, and joy. The very next time he listens to music is in chapter 9. This time, he doesn’t enjoy music at all. He is forced to dance and rap in front of a Chief of a village. What I can imagine is that Ishmael feels like music has been stolen from him. And this is proof that even music can be a consequence of the aftermath of war. Music was taken from Ishmael and at the end of the book, Ishmael got music back into his life. I learned that sometimes, you have to sacrifice all the important things that matter to you. Things like music,family, friends, sanity, integrity, vigilance, preservience, and your identity. When you are in Any kind of war you will always be affected. And through the mind and eyes of Ishmael, I got to experience .01% of what he felt during his journey. He fought for his life every second during that war. And I learned that no child should ever experience something like that.
War will always come with consequences. Some of this consequences will be death, PTSD, isolation, hunger and dehydration. Ishmael will probably have PTSD for the rest of his life. He may not know it, but he could be damaged mentally. And that is a very hard thing to deal with. Everyone has a different experience in war. And Ishmael had a very difficult one. I learned that he is very subtle when it comes to telling people about his experiences. But his mind isn’t subtle when it comes to the memories of what he went through. The aftermath of war will bring pain but also hope. Ishmael probably knows that even through the hardest times of any obstacle, you need to continue to have hope. Hope is the only thing that will truly keep you alive. Hope is what I learned that I need to hold onto. Everything has a beginning and an end. And it’s up to me if I want to see the end the same way Ishmael had an end to his war. War has a silver lining. It is horrible to say such a thing, but sometimes beautiful things can come from such a horrific time. And sometimes those beautiful things are people. People become more humble. People know that every little thing should not be taken for granted. People will show more compassion for those who have been hurt gratefully. This silverlining is a way people will come together as a community so that they can continue with their lives. The children of these men and woman will know how to raise their new generation. They will try and make their children do the correct thing. That war and violence in never the answer. They will tech then this, so that they never have to deal with the consequences of the aftermath of war. A war so horrendous that it will affect any person literally experiencing it or even a person like myself, who reads a testimony about war. I learned that through the most toughest times in life, there will always be a silver lining.
I am grateful to have been given the opportunity to read a testimony like Ishmaels. I am grateful for having a mother who shares a similar story to the one of Ishmael's and many others. Life is the consequence of violence. Life will not always mean happiness and peace. There would be no aftermath of violence if no one is alive to experience it. Life can bring joy, peace and innocence. Life can also be troubled thoughts, anger and war. The consequences of violence is also choice.we decide if we live a peaceful life or a vengeful life after an violence. I won’t forget that violence doesn’t just mean war, death and crime. What I learned from Ishmael is that violence comes in many forms. Violence is hunger, pain, thirst, solidarity, PTSD, and so much more. Sometimes we have to be grateful for the things we have in our life. Everything in life is either a blessing, or lesson. And we choose what we want to do with our life. Ishmaels testimony was a lesson that I have learned from. And I have learned that life is a blessing. So I should always appreciate the things I have and not worry for the things I don’t have. Life is too short to be worrying about what if. I should focus on what is.