Today my heart swings

casimirpulaskiday:

Yesterday, my statistics teacher gave us this long lecture about how we shouldn’t pursue our goals if they seem impractical, and he used his friend who studied psychology and now works at a bank as an example. “If you’re going to major in English or psychology or something, you probably won’t end up happy. You’ll just end up in a lot of debt.”

I do understand his reasoning. It’s less likely that you’ll easily find a job if you study English than if you study applied mathematics. But goddamn, if you’re not happy with what you’re pursuing, what the hell does it matter? My teacher hates teaching high school. He’s insecure about himself and it’s really apparent. He said that he really wanted to major in political science but that he found statistics to be more practical. This man isn’t even thirty years old and he’s already accepted that he’ll be doing something that he doesn’t even enjoy for the rest of his life because it was the safe thing to do at the time.

It’s good to have a backup plan; it’s good to think about the practicality of things. But if nothing’s holding you back, why don’t you also pursue what you’re truly passionate about? I understand that the economy’s bad. Things will be hard for a time, undoubtedly. But there are so many things that we have an opportunity to do here that people in other parts of the world couldn’t dream of doing, and those things aren’t just limited to making money. Some things take more time and perseverance than others, but it doesn’t make them worth anything less.

I absolutely agree with this. There’s nothing sadder than seeing people who settle for jobs and degrees which will earn them a bit of money in the short term, but that they’re not going to find rewarding or fulfilling in the long term. I guess the comforting thing to know is that it’s never too late to try something new or go back to what you love.