One of the most dreaded questions I ever had to answer, I had to answer a lot.
“So, what do you want to do when you grow up?” someone would ask little teenage me.
“Uhhh… how should I know? I’m 13,” is usually what I thought of, but I would always respond with some career I had previously thought would be cool, like a veterinarian, psychologist, interior decorator, or animal trainer. All of these things have a lot in common, if you think about it. For one, I’m not going to professionally do any of them. They were all things that I was half-interested in at some point or another, but none of them ever really felt right.
It is kind of terrifying to grow up chasing dreams. What if you never make it? How do you cope with that in front of all the people who believed in you? Because let’s be honest, a lot of people don’t fulfill their childhood career goals. What happens when your dreams change? Having to explain yourself to people every time you think of a different career option can be annoying and stressful, especially when it's people whose opinions of you seem to matter. Of course, what other people think of you is not the most important thing (unless you’re a celebrity or leader of the free world), and how you think of yourself is far more important. Choosing and pursuing a career for your own satisfaction is much better than fulfilling someone else’s vision of you.
When I was really young, 10 or so, I really wanted to be a veterinarian. I did research on how many schools I would need to go through, where the best schools were located, and even thought about (when I was old enough to, of course) shadowing our local veterinarian. And then I realized, maybe a year or so later, that no, I would not be happy doing that. I didn’t put thought into a backup plan at that point in my life, though, considering I was a child, so the ideas of what I wanted to do dissipated.
Then came years of answering that dreaded question with “I don’t know”s and false aspirations of still being a veterinarian. It wasn’t until high school that the thoughts of growing up really resurfaced in my mind. Even then, I had absolutely no idea what I wanted to do. That’s when things like animal trainer or interior decorator came to mind. I’m not sure why anymore, but they seemed fun and (on a surface level) fulfilling. It wasn’t until my junior year of high school-- you know when they expect you to know what you want to do with your entire life-- that I had a solid idea formulated that even slightly resembles the career I want now. I took one psychology course and it just hit me. This was what I wanted to pursue (thanks, Mr. Van). What I wanted to do with it, I still had no clue. Maybe I could be a psychologist, or a psych teacher, or a counselor. There were a lot of options. I applied to college to study psychology, went through two years, and was still thinking, “yeah, psychologist.”
And then junior year hit. It’s funny how that seems to be my pivotal year in my life. I have always held fairly strong beliefs on social and political issues, but more so in college due to a better understanding of the world, and the fact that I was able to vote in the 2016 election. With that in mind, I was especially partial to the social side of issues and learning about things impeding on human rights. This is the same time I volunteered with an organization helping refugees, which is most likely the catalyst that has opened my eyes to what I want to do with my life.
I enrolled in a sociology course and fell in love. I also have added sociology as a second major. It’s been these experiences that have made me realize what I want to do with my life, where my passion lies. And that is with helping people-- more specifically, homeless youth. Even more specific, I want to have a foster home. I want to be a member of a community that I help build, that devotes every day to helping children who need it the most. I want to give kids and teens alike the opportunity to discover who they are and what they want to do in life. I want to create an amazing environment for kids with no place to go, a place to want to call home.
I want to make a difference in the lives of the youth. I want to make a difference in the world. And now that I know that, nothing can get in my way.
