When I Grow Up I Want To Be…

When I grow up I want to be…

I can’t even begin to recall how many times that phrase came out of my mouth as a child. At one point I wanted to be a doctor, administering shots and making people ‘feel better‘. Another time I wanted to be a famous singer like Gem & The Rockstars!

I even wanted to be an archaeologist and discover a new dinosaur. At one point (and this is laughable), I wanted to explore the Milky way and the infinite stars. I was gonna be an astronaut no ifs, ands or buts about it.

But, as time wore on and I got older, my new wishes were to be a fiction writer like my favourite author, J.R.R. Tolkien.  I swore I would find the cure of cancer by studying cell formation in my lab as a scientist and I even think I thought I’d find myself in Egypt on some kind of excavation site.

Yeeeah, I had high aspirations.

I grew up with a huge imagination and a very heightened sense of curiosity because believe it or not, when I was a kid,  computers were just starting to pop up in homes. So, most of my time was spent outside or behind a book. The more I played the bigger my dreams became and the more I read, the more my horizons expanded.

As time went on and I made my way through the scholastic ladder, I was always drawn to my love of History and my passion of writing. There was something about past civilizations that thrived for years that fascinated me. Not to mention the when/why/how their demise came to be was very interesting. They say those who don’t remember the past are bound to repeat it. Anyway, I aspired attending University to take a major in History and a minor in Law.

Odd?

Tell me about it.

High school graduation came, grad caps flew and it was time to make a decision on what I really was gonna be when I grew up. I applied at a few Universities and Colleges and received much-anticipated acceptance letters to a few promising institutions. I had the choice either to pursue my dreams of becoming a History teacher, acquire my doctorate in that field and teach as a professor at the post-secondary/graduate level OR pursue my other dream of being a Journalist and doing one of the other things I felt a passion for.

Writing and media.

Now, as a headstrong teenager, I figured I liked doing both. I looked at the time it would take me to get my doctorate and I looked at how long it would take to be a Journalist. 8 years or so compared to 2-3 years.   I thought, “No comparison, really.” I looked forward to an exciting profession that being a Journalist could be. 

*insert eye roll please*

This mentality seemed genius to me at the time. Hehe.

All jokes aside, I did also consider having to make a move to the USA to attend the University I had been accepted to, opposed to staying in town. For many reasons, too many to name, I decided to pursue my career in media. My plans were to finish the program and move to Toronto (our big city in Ontario, besides Ottawa) and get a media job there. I was looking forward to working in some kind of Entertainment or PR media after graduation and then return to York University to further my education in Journalism.

But, the stork had other plans for me.

I was blessed with  the news that I was expecting halfway through my college experience. LOL. Needless to say, I worked hard and even at 8 months pregnant and through a kidney infection, I finished my semesters. I took 6 months off and returned to school and graduated as a converged Journalist the next year.

What Did I Choose?

I stayed in Windsor and dabbled in my new career. We have very minimal opportunities here considering that most Journalists stay in their jobs until retirement leaving little opportunity for young blood. I ventured into the county (45 mins away) and did some Entertainment Latin Broadcasting there for a while. It was low-budget, humble and a nice experience through my duration there. Since then, I’ve continued to write because I absolutely love it.

A few years ago, I decided to go back to school and enter the world of Health Care. It’s in demand, I had the grades for it and I love helping people. I figured what better time to start a new and successful career and my daughter was a good age for me to go back. Needless to say, I graduated and have been working for over two years now. I adore it and to be quite honest, I would have loved to do it sooner had I known how rewarding it is. There is something about being able to help people and make a difference in their lives every single day that drives me.

Everything Happens for a Reason.

Things didn’t turn out the way I thought they would, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. Every single thing that has happened to me has brought me to where I am today.  It gave me the gift of my first-born and allowed me to fulfill my passions. I’ve said it before and I stand by it, my life is literally like a puzzle that hadn’t all the parts being placed as they were, it could not have been brought to fruition. So I don’t regret a single thing and don’t think of the what-ifs but instead, I think of the right now and of what will be. I’m more than happy that I have a career, two beautiful, healthy children and an amazingly supportive husband who would totally support me if I decide to pursue another dream!

I didn’t discover the cure for cancer, I do support it though and maybe I didn’t get to see the Milky Way, but hey you never know! Maybe I didn’t discover new fossils but I can always dig in the sand and pretend that I did with my kiddos!

So maybe I never became what I wanted to be as a child…

But, you know what?

I’m perfectly okay with that.

What were your dreams and aspirations growing up and did you achieve them? Or are you living another dream/nightmare? LOL. Depends on who you talk to right? 😉 I’d love to know, so drop me a line!

Til then, cheers m’deres,

Nancy Polanco

Nancy Polanco is a freelance journalist, lifestyle content creator, and editor of Whispered Inspirations. She is a proud Mom to Gabby and Michaela, and wife to Darasak. They all share her insatiable wanderlust, enjoyment of good food, and sharing their adventures with the world. Nancy is a contributor to the Huffington Post, TODAY’s Parents, and an Oprah Magazine Brand Ambassador.