Aimless

‘So, you’ll be graduating this year. What are your plans for college?’ A common question - one I’ve been asked so many times, in so many ways I don’t know if I can answer it anymore. The question of a child’s future aim or goal is more complex than it sounds. To the one asking, it’s simple. To the one answering, it’s always difficult. Certainly fate has it’s role to play, who we are and who we may become is a lot more than our own plans and hopes; yet most of us still have at least the silhouette of our futures created in our minds.
Every child has a dream, a dream career. From early age, we were always encouraged to think about and answer this question. Most of us didn’t always understand the purpose, but we still answered, we still dreamt – in our own way. As we grew up, most of us moved on to more practical goals; goals that require a lot more sensible thought and a lot less dreaming.
‘Imagination is more valuable than knowledge.’ – Albert Einstein.
If this quote from our legendary scientist were true, then certainly most of us have lost a valuable thing, a simple but valuable object: our imagination.
Since I could speak, I’ve always answered that menacing question with a short answer:
‘I’ll be a doctor.’
Whether I understood what I spoke of, I don’t know. But as encouraged I have grown up playing with the doctor’s set toys; While most children played tea parties with their dollies, I played ‘Doctor, doctor.’ with mine. This might give an impression that I may have never had imagination, but I did and I’ve tried to use it everywhere I could. I have always found learning much simpler if your mind was kept open to new ideas, to see what others haven’t seen yet, to wonder about the things we forget to notice in our everyday lives. To me, science isn’t possible without imagination. How the human body’s immune system works at the molecular level I have never seen, but visually imagining the process certainly helps. Most people may have only studied like this as a child but I still like this method.
‘If success is ‘x’, then ‘x=a+b+c’. Where ‘a’ is work, ‘b’ is play and ‘c’ is keeping your mouth shut’ - Albert Einstein
An open mind, hard work and passion – I have believed this is the basis of getting to a better life. And these three things I have integrated into my personal life and I will hold onto forever. I may still not know exactly what career I would like to pursue, but I know that I will not give up my imagination, my passion for knowledge and determination. And with these I will become a successful person, with God’s assistance all the way.