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The Career Graph So Far...

This post is a winner at the Blogadda "My Dream Job" Contest. July 30, 2010.

I have had my dream job since I was eight. I am one of those lucky persons who did not have torun after a job they might like..Rather my dream job landed into my lap by kismet. So, the other day I saw this email from Blogadda and it mentioned “share your dream job and you never know you might get it after you let us know.” A lot of us will be excited to hear this, and I thought since I already have my dream job, who knows, sharing it might give me a chance to excel in it. So here is a reminiscent of my time on my job.

Image courtesy: http://www.hanselman.com/

I was five (or six), playing teacher-teacher in Thakuma’s bedroom, all alone. One of the walls which served as the blackboard was adorned with illegible scribblings, and my pupils (the stools and the chairs) listened to me in silence. I asked a question to one of the wooden chair, who failed to answer. That resulted in his ears being pulled out firmly, and hit by a cane brutishly.

My dad who was sitting at the desk, looked up from his work when he could no longer bear to see the sufferings of the poor chair at my hand. He pulled me up, sat me on his lap, and on enquiry received an animated explanation from me about the aforementioned chair’s consistent failings in the classroom and subsequent justified caning. Dad nodded, “Beta if you want to be good at your job, you might consider sparing the cane and explaining the subject in a simpler way. Now you do want to be a god teacher, don’t you?” I nodded vehemently, and he added, more intently this time, “Remember, no matter what you want to be in life, teacher or doctor, the first thing you would want to be is a good human being, ”I looked up at him, blankly, not realizing the actual meaning of his words.

“Which school do I have to go, Dad, to be… er… that?” I asked. Dad smiled, more humorously this time, “You don’t have to, Beta, you will learn it yourself.”

“So, would you help me to be one?”

“I can guide you, but it is you who have to do the job.” He went back to his work.

And I started working on the job to be a ‘good human being’.

I was ten, I received the paper for an algebra class test, and it read 00/20 in red. I showed the paper to mom, and she wailed for the next half an hour (longer than I regretted for the poor marks), cursed all the 33 crore God, who conspiratorially handed her down a stupid girl who would not turn up to do anything good in life. I sobbed, and cried, and said sorry that I failed them. Dad was calm. Later when the noise level came down to tolerable level (so that each one can hear the other in the room) he said, “Beta, its Ok if you get bad score in one of the tests. You can always try harder next time. What matters most is that you be a good human being, and that will make us very proud.” Those words again. He told the same the other day when I was dressing up for a friend’s birthday party, discarding one dress after another, unsatisfied with the reflection in the mirror. He consoled, “Wear anything, and and as long you have a good heart, you will feel the prettiest.”

So, by the age of nine or ten, I realized that the way to success is to be a good human being. “And what a easy job that is”, contended I thought. It was definitely easier to be a good human being than getting 20/20 in Algebra.

I was 15, playing lock-n-key in the school playground. My friend tripped on a stone and fell on the ground on her face. While others laughed, I ran to her, helped her to stand on her feet, and asked if she is OK. The appreciation in her eyes that day taught me the reward you get for being a good human being. I did not feel bad that I was not the most popular girl in the school, not the prettiest or the cleverest. I rather felt pride when I was called the most kind of all. I felt happiest and imagined a pair of colorful wings coming out of the back of my body (just like my favourite character Captain Haddock thinks each time he manages to do a kind job).

Life in school was simple, living with parents at home was even simpler. Being the daughter of a preeminent person and coming from a well-known family allowed me to enjoy certain advantages in life, and I could afford to be nice and kind to others without putting myself into much inconvenience. Then the time came when I had to move to another part of the country, to start my University education. Living in college dorms with other girls, leading a life where nobody knows anything about me other than my name was difficult. My primary job started to suffer. Though I managed to achieve some brownie points occasionally, there were other incidents when I realized that a hint of a new pair of horns was stemming out of the temple of my head.

So the day I discovered that the girl who I thought was my best friend was talking behind my back, I did not react kindly. Or the days when a girl refused to return the money she borrowed from me, or I suspected my drawer was searched and my note book had gone missing for more than two days, I was less than angelic in my behaviour. By the end of my 1st year in college the horns were in full view for everybody to see. And then there was this time when I wrote a full answer on my question paper and passed it to a friend during the university exam, as I was scared he might fail the exam otherwise. Though a shiver runs down my spine each time I think of that juvenile reckless behavior, the horns and the wings enjoyed connubial bliss on that day. (This best friend later turned against me, teaching me an important lesson in life: nobody in life is worth brandishing your horns for, but that is another story). There were other times when the wings fought with the horns, each trying to outdo the others, claiming authority. But I would spare the details here.

I finished my studies, and started teaching in a University. I studied to help people with hearing disabilities, but over the years decided that I could do something better than just be a direct care-giver. So I opted to teach and help students who will in the future go out in the world and help to make a few lives better. Though at times I might have lost my patience with my students, but mostly, I would like to believe, I performed well in my primary job and my students and colleagues would possibly remember me as a good human being.

A lot of incidents came crowded in my mind when I was writing this post, some still very fresh in mind, and others half forgotten. On those times, when the horns prevailed over the wings, I avoided my Dad’s gaze, as things were often more complicated than explaining the fault of a simple wooden chair. In retrospect, I feel that I might not have done brilliantly well in my job, but I trust I have done fairly well.

Today I am on the right side of 30, and with maturity, I realized that things are not always black and white. The horns are still there (and they serve pretty well to keep the halo in place). The colors of the wings are little faded here and there, but they still flutter as beautifully as they did that afternoon on the school playground.


This post is in response to the blogadda contest (powered by Pringoo).


33 comments:

D2 said...

The kindness shows. And you're right. It's not always black and white. There are shades of gray, and the depth of those shades define a normal human being.
Nice post. All the best. :)

Unruly Rebel said...

yea...exactly...life is much about living different shades of grey...nice post...all the best for contest.. :)

Moumita said...

@ D2, Thanks for the nice comments.
@namit, thanks for the wishes.

DISGRUNTLED GENIUS said...

Nice and thoughtful post....

I believe that 'grey-ness' depends on situation.. Sometimes world's behavior can push an otherwise nice human being to a complete wreck and revenge-seeking soul...

Its tough to understand the contradictions.. best to live your life the way you want it :)

Anyhow.. nice post and good luck for the contest Moumita :)

Cheers...

Moumita said...

@ Mayank, Exactly my thought- greyness depends on situation, but the integrity of our character is tested on how we realise the smallness of the situation and overcome it. Unfortunately the grey character that I am, succumbed to the situation more often than I liked.

Thanks for the wish.

A Restless Mind With A Sensitive Heart! said...

True life's not a black or a white, its different shades of grey. nice post. all the best for the contest!

restless

http://myworldmyperception.blogspot.com

Kaalicharan/Calvy said...

Nice post!

best wishes for the contest!

DISGRUNTLED GENIUS said...

I believe that everytime we succumb, it helps us in improvin the self.. so as long as u r learnin smthng, succumbin aint bad :)

As far as integrity goes, dont know but i have come to believe that its something that cant / shldnt be judged ....

eN said...

How many get to do their dream-job. Wonderful post. Being a good human-being is the basic thing which is somehow conveniently forgotten all along...
Good luck!!!

Sri said...

Hey,
What can I say? Forget about the content, my expressive language will even fade away in front of your so well-written blog (English writting skills).

Its nice to know what your dream job was/is. And more pleasing to know that you didn't use your 'Salaried job', which I gather is in the field of Deafness (speech & hearing handicapped). I am sure some of us would pose that 'working in deafness or some other disability', even if they are not actually working on or even near to it.

Well written and very gratifying to know that you are honest in stating that you didn't do the JOB (good human being) always- whihc I am sure true for all of us.

Good luck and keep doing the job WELL!

Anonymous said...

the last para.... the mention of the wings..blowed my mind.. a very good read... Best of luck for the contest! :)

Moumita said...

@restless, thanks for your wish. I am a new follower of your blog.

@Kaalicharan & Nandana, I am glad you liked it, thanks.

@ The Guy, Thanks for your nice comments. It is nice to hear that my words created some flutter somewhere.

Moumita said...

@Sri, You caught me. Well, I did not mention my real job here coz I believed you can't get paid for your dream job. You will wake up from your dream the moment you get your pay check, and start dreaming another dream. :P

Also, this post was for a contest and I apprehended a lot of other posts will be there on the same line (helping people with disability).

Third and most important reason is I wrote here what I felt. My "salaried job" is NOT my dream job.

Nice to know that you liked my style. Keep visiting my blog.

Unknown said...

Awesome read.. Having met you online.. This post helped me know you more..

Keep them coming.. :)
And Good Luck..

Anu said...

That's a great writing! how many of us get to do what we wanted (read dream) to do? 1 in 1000's get such an opportunity! And true that life has grey shades!

Moumita said...

@ Raj & Vaish,

Thanks for your nice comments.

Moumita said...

This comment has been removed by the author.

Unruly Rebel said...

congrats.. :)

Samadrita said...

What a wonderful definition of 'your dream job'. This totally deserved to win! Congratulations!

R. Ramesh said...

vallah..good post ya..i just started reading and went on..yes with age one changes a lot..friend's betrayal would leave me in a rage earlier..now i just laugh it off..to the extent that i thank them for showing the other side of the coin..and the need for balance in life...omg..me no philosopher..best wishes friend:)

Ugich Konitari said...

Great post Maumita ! Enjoyed reading your evolution into what you are ....and your Dad told you one of the most important tenets in life ! Congratulations on your win at Blogadda...

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
RS said...

Loved the post. Your style is excellent.

Keep it up.

Anu said...

Hey Moumita, Hearty congrats on your blogadda win! Kudos!

Moumita said...

@ Namit, Samadrita, RS & Vaish, thanks a lot. Glad you liked it.

@ R Ramesh, Thanks, I share the same feelings bout friend's betrayal now. Thanks to those friends, I learnt a lot about life.

@ Ugich, Thanks, coming from you, it means a lot to me. Welcome to my blog.

B said...

:)

Tall Girl in Japan said...

So well written !! and whatever you say is so true !!
Congrats on the win !

Tall Girl in Japan said...

So well written !! and whatever you say is so true !!
Congrats on the win !

Tall Girl in Japan said...

So well written !! and whatever you say is so true !!
Congrats on the win !

Reema Sahay said...

Congrats! Really a very good post. And yes, the joy that comes from helping others, cannot be matched to anything else.

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