When I was a freshman in high school, there were two paths that I excelled at: art and writing. My high school put a strong emphasis on sports, of which I did not partake. I was a theater geek, in a school with very little arts funding.
Because of required classes and my boneheaded guidance councilor who said that he couldn't support me taking art electives over classes that would get me into college, I followed the writing path, only to once again allow myself to be mislead by a "well meaning" professor who said that creative writing courses would hinder my ability to properly write term papers for my other classes.
Looking back, I feel like I missed out on what really made me happy, career-wise, because I allowed someone else to make my decisions for me. I've followed a path that, while introducing me to some great friends and teaching me so very much, has led me to work where I'm bored, living paycheck to paycheck and having no way to fund going back to school to make a change.
In a meeting today, that I covered for one of my bosses, I heard about a fabulous educational center that puts such an emphasis on arts, that I was both excited for those kids and jealous! Why didn't my school put more of an emphasis on arts education? Oh right, because it was a public school in a sports town. But the teachers in this educational center just loved their jobs, you could see it! Educating pre-K and kindergarten students, with the plan to expand into higher grades, brought great joy to their faces. It got me thinking how incredibly rewarding it must be to be an educator like that, in early learning for a private school that has a Montessori background.
I'm still not sure where my personal road is leading, but just seeing in these teachers that finding happiness in your chosen career field is possible gives me great hope that I can find that, too.
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