The product I chose to improve was my final reflection on the experience at ASONIC. I chose it because it pushed me to think beyond activities — to connect what I lived with bigger questions about empathy, inequality and privilege. Improved version of the product This semester I had the opportunity to accompany children and adolescents at ASONIC, the Ecuadorian Association of Parents of Children and Adolescents with Cancer. Arriving at service each day involved a mix of excitement, nerves and responsibility. At first I observed a lot: how the kids organized themselves, how they interacted with each other, what they needed that day. Little by little I integrated into the activities — games, supervised homework, values workshops, organizing the playroom — and I stopped thinking of service as "going to help" and started seeing it as a space where I learned as much as I contributed. One moment marked me especially. One of the kids was distant and distrustful at first. He didn't participate much. Instead of pressuring him, I tried to approach him calmly and give him space. After a while he started to respond, to participate, and even to show trust. That moment taught me that impact isn't always visible in big immediate changes. Sometimes it's in small gestures: a child smiling, asking something, feeling safe with you. I learned that with this population — children who often face long medical treatments, hospitalizations and fears most adults can't even understand — patience and presence are worth more than any well-planned activity. The biggest challenge was learning not to take reactions personally. When a kid didn't want to participate, I'd get frustrated at first. Over time I understood that behind a difficult attitude there's almost always tiredness, fear, physical pain or a situation I don't know about. I learned to observe before acting and to be flexible with my expectations. But the deepest lesson came from questioning my own privileges. Having had the opportunity to study at USFQ and to participate in an international program at Cornell made me see clearly that access to opportunities is not equal for everyone. I don't say this from guilt, but from responsibility. ASONIC is not a place where I went to "give"; it's a place where I learned that the families and kids I worked with have agency, dignity and full rights, and that my role was to accompany, not rescue. Today I understand service as a practice of conscious citizenship: using what I learn to contribute better, without paternalism, listening before proposing. Written reflection What did I learn? I learned that community service isn't about "helping from above," but about being present, listening, and recognizing the dignity and rights of the people we work with. I learned that patience is not passivity — it's an active form of respect — and that with children and adolescents living with complex medical realities, the most valuable thing one can offer is genuine attention and consistency. I also learned to question the idea that people in vulnerable situations need others to decide for them; on the contrary, they have the same right as anyone to define what they want and need. Why was this learning meaningful to me? It was meaningful because it forced me to confront my own prejudices. I came to ASONIC with the idea, perhaps not consciously, that I was going to "contribute something" to kids who needed help. I left understanding that my role was much more humble: to accompany, to support, to learn. The experience connected with deep things about how I see myself in the world — especially when contrasting my opportunities, like having studied at Cornell, with very different realities other families live in Ecuador. That contrast didn't leave me with guilt; it left me with responsibility. How did it impact me? Was it personal or professional? The impact was both. On a personal level, it changed how I relate to people in general: I learned to observe more, assume less, and ask with real curiosity instead of projecting what I think the other person needs. It questioned my tendency to want to "solve" everything and taught me that sometimes the most valuable contribution is simply being there. Professionally, this changed how I see my future in Human Resources. I no longer just want to be efficient designing talent policies; I want to be a professional who recognizes that behind every employee there are family, medical and emotional realities that companies frequently ignore. I want to bring what I learned at ASONIC into the corporate world: real care policies, not just wellness rhetoric.