From the moment children enter the education system within the United States, they are told to have a goal. Be it getting great grades that should, in theory, gain one an immediate entrance into whatever higher education system this person may desire, or doing so many activities that spinning around becomes more than just a phrase, a goal is taught to be an inherent part of being a student. Generally, as students get older, this goal becomes more focused on what one should become - i.e. the doctor, the engineer, the lawyer. All positions with great merit, and in a society such as ours, ones that are viewed with metaphorical yellow brick roads leading to the copious amount of success and influence of the monetary variety.
Hardly any thought is given to fields, careers, or pathways outside of these. This is especially true in college, as many attempts to find careers through such highly encouraged paths, causing other studies to merely be brushed off as, as someone, I heard recently state, "A great major if you don't know what you are doing." In hearing this, I find the need to reiterate that while a select career or pathway may be valued over others in our culture, it does not mean that one is more important or is any less than what it is. Humanities, social sciences, the arts, and sciences all have as an equal of a need on this earth as another. What would the world be if one was to Lin-Manuel Miranda from creating such critically acclaimed plays such as Hamiltonand In the Heights? Would the advancement of science be as revolutionary if Marie Curie had decided not to take up the study of radiation?
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The answer, in truth, is no. No, it would not be as enlightened, as touched, as worldly if these people had not designed to pursue their passions, their studies. If they had followed the recipe to success as dictated by our society, the people of this nation would be following the same cycle, around and around. As such, I urge you, dear reader, to follow your passion. Pursue the impossible, negate the probable, and beware the flames of risk. Study what you love and find new ways to make that a lucrative career. Careers and pathways will fall in and out of your life. Be it a scientist, historian, or screenwriter, wear each and every cloak. Don't just stop at what you should be, become what you need yourself to be.
