Bridges (los puentes) are something with which I am very familiar and have lots of experience. Where I grew up in Richmond, Virginia, the James River runs through the center of town (el centro de la ciudad) and divides the city into areas in the north, south, east and west. You transverse the city by continually crossing bridges to get (viajar) from one side to the other, to cover (ir) a distance over impassable terrain, in this case, rushing river water. Without the bridges, you would have a smaller world (un mundo más pequeño), a more local existence that would be mitigated and influenced by what was directly around you, not what you might see on the other side (al otro lado).
Where I currently in El Paso, Texas, there are a number (un numero) of bridges that link the border (la frontera) of the US and Mexico, in some ways covering the gap between two different cultures, two different countries (dos países diferentes) and two different cities. The bridges serve as lifelines of commerce (de comercio), where goods and services pass back and forth, from Juarez to El Paso and from many points throughout the US to many points (a muchos puntos) throughout Mexico. The bridges also serve as links (las enlaces) for people to move back and forth between two different places, some in cars, some on buses (los micros), some on foot (en pie), whatever the mode of transportation, people stream back and forth at every hour of the day, for every day of the year.
When I set out to come to Chile, I knew I would have an opportunity to learn (aprender) about a new culture and to share my own experiences as a citizen (un ciudadano) of the United States of America. The Fulbright Commission sent out information that talked about the role of the individuals for the US as cultural ambassadors (los embajadores culturales), in effect representing the US to the citizens of the host country, in my case, here in Santiago and throughout Chile. I knew this was something (algo) that was to be taken seriously, and something I certainly felt completely unprepared to do (hacer), I mean, I am a professor, not a member of Congress or the State department, I have no official training (no entrenamiento oficial) in being a liaison or a representative of any shape or form. But in some ways, that lack of training qualified me completely, to be able (poder) to present a true picture of a real person and to search (buscar) for that in others in my life in Chile.
I am a bridge (yo soy un puente), in that I represent my country here in Chile, and I am a face (una cara) of the US for many of the people I encounter, both academics, students and regular citizens, and I have a great chance to make this a truly positive experience, a real experience to remove (remover) misconceptions and to build (construir) relationships and cover new ground. I am also a bridge in that when I go back home to the US, I will now be an advocate (un defensor) for Chile, a person who understands the people, who knows the ways things are done, and how the culture in manifested into people’s daily lives (las vidas diarias de la gente). I am a bridge, in the same way that bridges span distances between two solid points of ground (la tierra), I span the distance between two countries and between two cultures.
I recently had a colleague (un colega) tell me that he enjoyed my academic contributions, but one thing that stood out to him, was that as a North American, I was able to have (tener) a positive impact on the students at UMCE. He mentioned that their experiences with me helped to shed some light (la luz) on the reality of the US, and that maybe we all have more in common than we are lead to believe (creer). I guess that is the best part of being a bridge, in that your real purpose is to allow others to cross the path (un camino) that you are upholding.
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