I’m beginning to get annoyed with the idea that I need to have a set plan of exactly what my life will entail. In comparison to others so ready with their life plans written out on official paper and hand-pressed to perfection my ideas are scattered fragments on post-it notes. Because honestly, no tengo ni idea what my life will look like, and I’m quite content to keep in that way. It’s been ingrained in our heads since childhood, the age old question of “so what will you be when you grow up, Johnny?” “A doctor!” “An astronaut!” “A lawyer” Like we’re supposed to have an answer always, and only the best will suffice. The sad kid in the corner crying that she wants to be “a waitress!” soon gets the worried expressions of adults telling her to find a more worthwhile career to devote her life to. But that’s just it; my idea of a worthwhile job is much different than the norm. Nor do I want to devote my life to a single career and in doing so, lose myself to it. Had you asked me when I was six or so, “what do you want to be when you grow up, Jennifer?” the answer would probably have been “a teacher!” or “a K-nex architect!”(I was pretty cool); at least I had a plan. Now, I’m looking at my life and realizing that, not only do I have ni idea what career I’ll take, I’m quite sure I’ll not just have one career. My current answer to the age old question is “a wanderer!”, and boy does that raise eyebrows. “But what will you do?!” “Where will you go?!” “It’s not stable!” Thank God it’s not. I’ve come to see that a career path should be just that, a path. A road that entails some sort of growth and movement down the line, sometimes a rather exciting fork in the road or the taking of a new course altogether. The thought of dedicating myself for decades to a single job—that’s terrifying. The stagnancy of it kills. Maybe it’s just the idea of being defined by it that repulses so.
Someday, if ever I settle down my mind will probably change but at the moment the prospect of what may come is too exciting to ignore. Don’t be surprised if ten years from now you hear tell of me in Asia doing social work or Latin America teaching English, just know I’m extremely happy in whatever God-forsaken slice of the world I’ve found myself in. Even if that wind blows me to Antarctica, I recently heard of a program to go and work there for a few months… But we shall see. That’s the exciting part, I just don’t know. I’m standing at a fork in the road with a backpack of knowledge and experience and am taking a step down an obscure path. There’s only light enough to see a few paces ahead, yet I couldn’t be more excited.
Bring it, world.