Will Sherman

2016
Puerto
The fourteen of us piled into a van meant for twelve and started for Hacienda Verde;
approximately a 2 hour drive from old San Juan. We talked about home and interests and light topics as
the Spanish road signs and compact store squares whizzed by the window. The music from Blaus phone
plugged into the AUX grew louder as we ran out of things to chat about. Its weird to think about how
little we knew each other then, considering how much we would come to learn in the coming days. We
had just arrived in Puerto Rico from various places around the U.S. and were about to embark on a tenday service trip across the island.
The island was breathtakingly beautiful; I had never experienced anything like that first drive. The
ocean views, mountaintop paths, and completely different culture in the cities we passed through left me
in absolute awe. Nonetheless, when we arrived at the local farm in Hacienda Verde, my first reaction
was disgust. The building we were to be sleeping in was infested with spiders and other mysterious
insects, and had no AC; it was the end of July. I spent the first night planning my escape as beads of
sweat covered every inch of my body and spiders crawled on the ground next to my bunk; I could not
handle this torture for nine more days. The first day changed my mind. Our first assignments was to
create an irrigation system for the farmer housing us so he could more easily water his crops and tend to
his land; it was not easy work, but I loved it. I could actually see the result my input was having on this
mans life and how I was truly making a contribution. There would be no more plotting my escape. As
soon as I stopped wishing I was anywhere but there, I started to recognize and appreciate all of the
amazing things Puerto Rico had to offer; the seemingly endless green and brown of the forests that
surrounded us swallowed me whole. I could not complain about working because the place I was
striving to help was breathtaking, and I felt lucky to be given the opportunity to do be a part of what
makes Hacienda Verde so amazing.

I learned that the rest of the volunteers had hated the first night as much as I did, and that they too
recognized the importance of our work and were willing to endure the troubles. We started to have fun
together; hunting spiders that terrorized the rooms at night, making games out of the water drinking we
were required to do every day in order to stay hydrated, and constantly sharing jokes, stories, and games
during work. Hacienda Verde was where we all really started to come together and become a team
instead of thirteen individuals. We started to form a community, each night we took responsibility; some
cooked, some cleaned, some logged in the journal, some did other chores, but everybody contributed.
On the last day at the farm, just after we had finished the irrigation system, the farmer walked us
through the forest that surrounded his farm. We got to a spot where the land split, forming a natural
crevice about 100 yards wide in the forest floor; a microcosm of the rest of the forest grew at the
bottom, and the canopy opened up above, creating a dome like structure that stretched from the lowest
point on the land to the heavens. We sat on the edge one side and watched the sunset, and words among
us slowly died out as night approached; only the sounds of the forest around us remained. Slowly at
first, and then unbelievably quickly, fireflies filled the dome below us and lit up the night. Ive never
seen and doubt I will ever see again anything like the sea of light under my feet in Hacienda Verde.
On the way to Casa Pueblo- our next destination, we stopped at the Arecibo Observatory, where
the National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center is centered, and a 1000-foot Radio Telescope is located.
During the initial presentation at the observatory, the presenter called me out by name, pretending he
knew me even though I had never seen him before, so I went along with it, pretending and convincing
some of the kids on the trip I had worked in the observatory the previous summer. It turns out the
leaders of the Apogee Adventure, Blau and Thomas, had put the guy up to it- a prank on me backfired
that resulted in a memorable joke we still talk about today. After the shenanigans, we went to see the
satellite dish, and it was one of my favorite parts of the trip; like a sore thumb, it stuck out, an enormous
hunk of metal in the middle of the mountains and forests of Puerto Rico, but the best thing was not the
view, but the science they were conducting at the lab. I talked to the presenter for an hour about the

research they were conducting and fed my lust for STEM knowledge with newfound understanding of
astronomical physics lab work.
We varnished houses, dug salt mounts, and did various other activities around the island in a
similar fashion to how we worked in Hacienda Verde; we wanted to work hard, and a stronger bond
developed between the thirteen of us we did more to help others. We went surfing in Rincn; on a
famous beach for the sport, and as I sat in the waves, breathing in the salt and awaiting my opportunity
to showcase my skills, I realized that the stigma I had felt towards this trip on the first day had
completely vanished- in fact, I had been unable to stop and see that this trip was one of the best
experiences Ive ever had, because I was caught up in, and thoroughly enjoying, the every moment of it.
While my time on the mainland was a truly special and indescribable experience, it was nothing
compared to my experience on Vieques, a small island off the coast of Puerto; the atmosphere and
dynamic of the trip completely changed, and it was by far the best part of the trip.
We took an hour-long ferry ride to Vieques on the third to last day of the trip. I loved it, being on the
water and feeling the slight sway of a moving boat had always made me feel calm, so I was able to relax
and sleep on the trip. But, some of the other volunteers who were a little weak stomached couldnt
handle the boat for an hour and got sea sick- not a good start for the final destination of our trip. Things
changed once we got to the island.
We met Nato Martinez, the president of a local outreach program dedicated to keeping Puerto Rican
teens off the street and immersed in community service, and he brought us to La Casa de Amistad, the
center for Vieques community service. The first day was filled with games and activities designed to
allow us and the Puerto Rican native teens to bond and get to know each other; and really, it set the tone
for the rest of our time on Vieques. We had to make a good impression on the community, so that the
teens would be willing to work with us for the next couple of day, which put a lot of pressure on us in
the beginning. However, once we realized that they Vieqans were just like us; teens looking to make a
difference, the conversation came naturally and the camaraderie between the two groups grew.

The friendship we formed with the natives on the first day prompted their appearance in every service
activity we did that week, as well as compelled them to share their cultural norms with us. They brought
us to the Bio Bay, showed us the good swimming spots, and even cooked dinner for us one night, which
was much better than the dinner we had been cooking for ourselves; I remember the scent of spanish
spices filling our house and making my mouth water. The service was rewarding, but the experiences we
had because of the friendships we made were far more memorable and enjoyable- they made the trip
something truly special. I learned that service is about more than just helping someone who needs it at
one point in time; its about making connections with others and forming a global community devoted to
making the world a better place all of the time.
We returned to the mainland by ferry after three days and drove a few hours to get back to old San
Juan, where we spent a day shopping in local marts and enjoying our time. Our last meal together was in
a delicious local restaurant where they served traditional Puerto Rican meals and where we got to have
our first soda in ten days. It was hard to say goodbye to Puerto Rico and all of the people that made my
trip so special, until I realized that it was more of a au revoir, because I still talk to all my new American
and Puerto Rican friends, and I intend to see all of them, and Puerto Rico, again.