What I'm Supposed to Do

"Time of My Life" - David Cook

Dreams may be the strongest forces on earth. They may also be the most dangerous. They have the power to create, and just as often destroy human triumph. It is a well-known fact that many dreams ARE out of reach, but what would happen to mankind if all unattainable dreams were abandoned? Do we need these dreams to be pursued in order to keep advancing as a civilization? And if so, when is it okay to give up?

I have been an over achiever all my life, graduating high school with a 4.6 GPA and a $40,000 scholarship to a well respected college. I have spent many a night studying and writing final papers, in the back of my mind settling for nothing less than an A on the assignment at hand. I have been the president of countless clubs including National Honors Society. And in one years time I would have managed to graduate in four years with three degrees. I’ve done everything I’m “supposed” to do. And now, upon graduation, I am faced yet again with a choice: “What I’m supposed to do” v. “What I want to do”.

There is no doubt that my passion is music. And in typing that sentence I have just convinced myself that it is the path I must in the end choose to follow. But everyone knows the uncertainty of it as a career. Musicians are either very well off (in rare cases) or living out of cardboard boxes, so to speak. But I don’t think a true musician can tell the difference, because nothing else matters.

When I am on stage I am at my best. When people listen to me I don’t hesitate to bear my soul. My lyrics are my diary, and the rhythm and melody by which I deliver them tell my story. I’m never as naked as when I am before a crowd with a guitar in hand.

This is what I want to do. I want to play and I want people to listen. But here I am, being handed a company straight out of college. Not many people can say they have this offer on the table. To be set up completely with the tools I need to become a millionaire by the time I’m 26. So here lies my dilemma.

I’ve done everything I’m supposed to do, all my life. I think it may be my turn to live.