What I Want to Be When I Grow Up

 

"Education is great... but it's really my creativity that's taught me that I can be much more than what my education told me I am." ~Raghava KKFor a very long time, I regretted the path I had taken in life. I went to college without the slightest idea of what it was I wanted to do with my life. My freshmen year I lived in a dorm with several girls who were education majors. I've always loved kids, so I thought why not? I changed my major from undecided to Early Childhood and Elementary Education by my second semester. I finished college still not entirely sure of who I wanted to be when I grew up. I enjoyed teaching, but I just wasn't fully convinced that that was the path I was meant to take. After graduation, I took a summer job as a camp counselor at a childcare facility on an army base. Summer came and went, and I still didn't have a job for the Fall. I decided to stay on at the army base's daycare and was offered a position in the School Age and Teen programs. I spent the last ten years working with all age groups in my program; infant, toddler, preschool, and school-age. Working in childcare for ten years was never part of the plan. It wasn't supposed to be a long term position, merely a stepping stone. I have always loved to write and draw. I am not sure what held me back from pursuing some form of creative writing or fine arts degree. I regretted that decision for a long time. I resented going to school for education, and I resented my years spent in childcare. Then, something happened. It hit me like a stack of books. This was exactly the path I was meant to take. It was all a part of my journey, leading me to where I am today. I have been building a framework that will lead me to success as a published children's author and illustrator. My favorite part of the day at work has always been reading aloud to my students. I have years of experience in reading to children, in working with children and books. I know what kids like. I know what captures their interest and attention. I know what struggles today's generation of kids are facing and how a well written story can speak to them. In addition to that, I have a fabulous supply of fodder to inspire my writing from all the silly and adorable antics of the children I have known and loved through the years. I no longer regret the path that I took in life. It has led me to exactly where I am today, to this amazing journey I am on in becoming exactly who I want to be when I grow up: myself.