Preventative Careers

I find myself thinking about what the future for my kids might look like. We are faced with those questions as our 20yr old son tries to figure out his career choices.

What to pick? Where to go? What to do?

How difficult it must be given the state of affairs and turmoil our world is in right now. Does one choose to be a doctor with ideas of healing the world? Or does one wonder why we don't have doctors educate rather than medicate a population of over consumers? Is it even fair to think they should have to deal with larger social issues? Or have they tried and are too tired policing our bad habits?

Should he consider the police force, which has crossed his mind numerous times? Much to his mothers fright. I don't know why that scares me so, but it does.

How does one know where to dip ones toes in the water when the water has become a social hot topic? A commodity to be bought and sold, leveraged and traded. There are those who have free flowing access and those who are denied school just to walk to obtain it.

Where does this make sense?

What about a teaching career? His English teacher hoped he would choose that path. My spouses family is filled with educators. A noble career indeed. But can one help to reform a system, that so badly needs it, from the inside? Or should he look to work alongside with an outsiders perspective?

Ecology wise, we North Americans have gone green, well when we are not driving one of our many vehicles still stuck in our old bad habits. Kind of funny when so many other progressive countries in the world have been doing, more successfully, what we are trying to do, for much longer. None the less, green seems to be the way to go. Or has green just become a catch phrase of our current time? We need drastic reform in this area of our lives too.

Forestry conservation is one choice he is seriously considering. It is a very comprehensive career which could lead down many paths. I like this one. But that doesn't matter, I am his mother. The world he is a part of needs to think beyond what my generation could conceive.

So what skills do they need to be armed with to take on an abused, overused, I am right and you will just have to get used to it world?

Sharing. Acceptance. Listening. Respect.

Hmm. We raise our children to know these "rules" from when they are very small. Maybe they were born knowing this already. Did we lack integrity in our walk and talk? Did we too forget what deep inside us we already know?

Maybe instead of preventative careers, we need creative careers. And not just the kind that quickly comes to mind. Creative in the way of reinvention. Why prevent what we have messed up when you can reinvent a better way. Start it over again.

The job posting might look like this:

WANTED

Creative individuals with the ability to think outside the box.

Forward thinkers who instinctively choose to try the path less taken.

Your skill set includes:

• Being colour blind.
• You listen well but know when to ignore the voices who tell you how it is and what is so.
• Knowing our way is always, the way, although you are expected to ignore this too and do what needs getting done.
• The ability to leave religion out of your job, but know that it can define ours.
• Confidence. (Read BUCKET LOADS) This is vital! Love and believe in yourself as you are - although we try to undermine that in every way, shape and form in all that we "put out there" in the world

Start Date: Now

WARNING: The path less taken is slowly disappearing - you know, survival of the fittest!