This I Believe
Faisal Mustafa
Professor Wheeler
ENGL1302 2SE
21 July 2013
The Successful Garbage Man I believe in the successful garbage man. This would be seen as a paradox to many people, however, the success does not come from financial gains but rather the level of happiness and self-fulfillment within the individual. I believe in the thirty year old married man who is content with working at an ice cream shop all day and finally coming home to a wife who loves him regardless of his line of work. I used to think this scenario could never happen because my mother would always tell me that a medical degree was my only ticket to a beautiful house, life, and wife. “High paying job equals high quality wife,” she would say to me. It made perfect sense at the time. Average American children nowadays grow up being taught that they can become anything they dream of being, even if the profession is the president of the country. Although ambitions are always great to have, the truth is that most people will never end up with their dream job, house, car, spouse, etc. As I got older, the definition of the word “successful” morphed into what it means to me today. During high school, a certain girl named Megan changed my outlook on my future through the times we spent together, as best friends and significant others. For the first time in my life I was able to feel vulnerable, comfortable, satisfied, and truthful simultaneously. Around the time of senior year, my interest in the medical field rapidly lessened almost every day. Sadly, the fear of disappointing my parents and upsetting their dreams were greater than the urge to come clean. And on top of that, I was already taking a Clinical Rotations class for which I had to apply for, somehow beating out a lot of other kids who actually want to have an “M.D.” next to their name one day. I couldn’t even bring myself to go to Megan for solace regarding this dilemma yet a part of me wanted to be confronted about it. That is exactly what
Professor Wheeler
ENGL1302 2SE
21 July 2013
The Successful Garbage Man I believe in the successful garbage man. This would be seen as a paradox to many people, however, the success does not come from financial gains but rather the level of happiness and self-fulfillment within the individual. I believe in the thirty year old married man who is content with working at an ice cream shop all day and finally coming home to a wife who loves him regardless of his line of work. I used to think this scenario could never happen because my mother would always tell me that a medical degree was my only ticket to a beautiful house, life, and wife. “High paying job equals high quality wife,” she would say to me. It made perfect sense at the time. Average American children nowadays grow up being taught that they can become anything they dream of being, even if the profession is the president of the country. Although ambitions are always great to have, the truth is that most people will never end up with their dream job, house, car, spouse, etc. As I got older, the definition of the word “successful” morphed into what it means to me today. During high school, a certain girl named Megan changed my outlook on my future through the times we spent together, as best friends and significant others. For the first time in my life I was able to feel vulnerable, comfortable, satisfied, and truthful simultaneously. Around the time of senior year, my interest in the medical field rapidly lessened almost every day. Sadly, the fear of disappointing my parents and upsetting their dreams were greater than the urge to come clean. And on top of that, I was already taking a Clinical Rotations class for which I had to apply for, somehow beating out a lot of other kids who actually want to have an “M.D.” next to their name one day. I couldn’t even bring myself to go to Megan for solace regarding this dilemma yet a part of me wanted to be confronted about it. That is exactly what