Growing up, my idea of a dream job changed frequently. As a child, I based my careers on what I had read in books, my hobbies and interests, and my experiences. As the years went by I went through many careers: I wanted to become an artist because I loved to paint; a horse farmer seemed like an interesting career after I read the Heartland books by Lauren Brooke; reading the Harry Potter books for the first time and writing my first story in grade five, convinced me that I could become a writer.
When I entered high school, my goal was to study English and become an author. I knew that there wasn’t much of a chance of becoming published, so I decided that an English teacher would be a good side job. However, my grade nine English experience left me a little disheartened. However, second semester of grade nine offered me an insight into another career path: science. Science allowed me to view the world differently. I became aware of how detailed, exact, and perfect everything was around me.
As I learned more, I began researching careers in science. From the beginning I knew I didn’t want to become a doctor (mainly because of my fear of needles). But I looked into dentistry, research, pharmacy etc. At one point astronomy seemed like the career. I realized that the world wasn’t just limited to the Earth. However, grade 11 physics deterred me from that dream. Again, my experiences were shaping my choice in a career.
As more time went on, I meandered off into other courses outside of the realm of science. World history and American history introduced me to another career path that I had long forgotten. My memories of grade eight history class were slowly coming back to me.
Sitting here at the computer as I write this short essay, I am stuck between two choices: choosing the career path that will result in a good paying job that I will probably enjoy, or choosing a career path that is an interest and a hobby combined into one. A great quote once said by Confucius is: “Choose a job that you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” And I think, as I sit here and type away, that maybe history will be the one in the end.