I sit here today thinking about the many accomplishments I have made in my short almost 21 years on earth. For such a young person, I have succeeded at many things, I should be happy. I have already started making a place for myself in the journalism world and have finished most of the schooling I wish to pursue but what comes next?
In my grade 10 English class each student was asked to make a 10 year plan. At the time it seemed insane to think that by 25 we could have any let alone all of the things on it checked off. It turns out it wasn't that hard, and everything I had once dreamed of, I know have.
Number one on my list was to find a school I could be happy in. Students in Quebec spend five years in high school, Secondary 1-5, which is equivalent to grades 7-11 elsewhere. If they want to continue their schooling, they are usually expected to go on to CEGEP, where they spend two years preparing for university or go to trade school. I was tired of doing things how they were supposed to be done; therefore I wanted nothing to do with CEJEP. I accomplished this by picking my high school electives carefully and choosing courses which would allow me to have the necessary credits for Ontario schooling. As I turned 17 merely the summer after grade 11, I was by far the youngest in my photojournalism course, surrounded by an average student of around 20 years of age.
Number two on the list was to be independent. I didn't want to mooch off my parents for the rest of my life, and wanted to be self sufficient. After my schooling I only moved back in with my parents for about two months, and after that worked a sales job to provide for myself. Check that off the list as well, especially since I have moved all the way out here alone.
I wanted to stop the bullying that I went through in High School as well, and get rid of the negative people in my life. In high school you often fear eliminating friends, as being alone in such a large school is simply too terrifying. After I graduated however and met tons of amazing inspiring youth in other provinces I was quickly able to confront the people who had mistreated me. Crossed that one off the list completely by the time I turned 20.
I now have a job in the field I want to spend the rest of my life in and instead of being fully happy I am concerned about what to do next. A couple of decades ago it would have been expected to be where I am by 21, but now most young people struggle to get any form of employment. It ticks me off that because of the over reporting of the job industry being terrible, young adults are using this as an excuse to live life in a small bubble in their parent's basement.
In less than a week, I will be 21 years old. I will be legal everywhere, and considered an adult almost all around the world. By this time, I am hoping to have a whole new 10 year plan which will hopefully inspire me to be less lazy and comfortable in the spot I am in. Sure I want the typical things others want such as to buy a house, own a car, start saving towards a future, but I think my number one goal might be to have more fun. I spent a lot of time and work figuring out the important stuff that I may have forgotten to go out and enjoy life, which in Saskatchewan is as simple as looking up at our beautiful skies and night stars.
