I work in an office at my college, and today, as I sit behind my computer, directing people to the correct rooms for their various meetings and answering phones, I can overhear a student desperately telling a teacher that, after completing pre-req's for three different areas of study, he still doesn't know what he wants to do with his life. And while this is far from uncommon to overhear when one is in any school setting, this one instance, out of all the others, has gotten me thinking...
I've been very lucky in my life to always know exactly what I wanted to do. I even remember the exact moment I came to this realization. And even though, through the years, I've told people multiple things about my plans for the future, everything from being a High-school or college English professor, to working in the publishing and/or editing world, to being a writer myself, to a therapist, a book store owner, a librarian, a music teacher, a troubled teens counselor, owning and running my own magazine, etc..., and while many of these things still appeal to me, none of them hold as much appeal or make me as happy as my chosen path.
This has been difficult for many people, including members of my family, to accept and support. I can't tell you how many times I've gotten the question "But WHY do you want to do THAT?!" or "Don't you know how low the success rate is?", and while my answer never seems to satisfy them, I remain firm in my answer: It is what makes me happiest, it is what I feel I should be doing with my life at this point in time, and I love it, more than (just about) anything.
Part of the reason I've chosen the career I have is because I have never been one to think small. I truly believe that, with a lot of hard work, faith, and perseverance, one can accomplish anything within the realms of possibility, and sometimes even beyond. I look at the examples of the people we spend our childhoods reading and hearing about, Abraham Lincoln, Marie Curie, Martin Luther King Jr, The Wright Brothers, Thomas Edison, Helen Keller, people who faced incredible odds, who had an immense amount of opposition, and still were able to accomplish something great. My mom is also one of the greatest examples I have of someone overcoming seemingly impossible odds and becoming the stronger for it, as are many moms (and dads) throughout history and today.
With all these wonderful examples I've had throughout my life to look up to, can it be any surprise that my dreams are so much bigger than seems reasonable to those who question them? And why it is so hard for me to grasp why anyone would choose a different path than the one that makes them happiest, simply because the world tells them that it can't be done, or, at least, can't be done by the likes of them?
I've been there. I've gone through long periods of doubting if I had any talents to offer the world, or if I was just a tiresome, good-for-nothing leech clamped onto its back. I've ranted to friends, I've cried, I've moaned, I've prayed, I've practiced till I couldn't see straight anymore, and I've planned my "safety nets", but all in vain. You see, besides this strange fixation with people who have succeeded, I have also been blessed (or cursed, depending on how you see it) with an extreme stubbornness that could rival pack donkeys, and a good dosage of pride that makes even the most dignified lion look like a clumsy oaf. I tend to think of my stubbornness as "determination", and my pride as "composure", but who am I kidding. It was my stubbornness and my pride that kept me from changing my major, to keep practicing and seizing every opportunity to use my talents (as now I finally see them), simply because I had told people that this was what I was meant to do, and no way was I about to let them know I was wrong. Which, it turns out so far, I'm not. Not that I have any delusions of not changing my mind at any point in the future. In fact, I reserve the right to change my mind about any and every aspect of my life (aside from my belief in God) at any time I so please.
So, when I overhear someone saying that they don't know what they want to do with their lives, it makes me happy, once again, to have been blessed with knowing from a very young age what I wanted to do with my life, and to have it verified for me time and time again. Please understand, I'm not trying to brag, I'm trying to express my gratitude. Because who wouldn't be grateful to know where their life is going?
