In response to: http://owlssayhooot.blogspot.com/2010/05/third-times-charm.html
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The task is simple. Tell me what career’s you would like to have if you lived three lives. It does not matter if you possess the skill or talent for your desired career, follow your heart and tell me what you would like to do. Here are my three lives….
Music. I can’t think of anything quite like the feeling of playing in an orchestra, and even though I gave up any hope of this dream being a reality a few years ago it’s still something I’d love to do. I don’t think my tastes in music have changed fundamentally from when I was much younger, so I’d still stick with strings. Part of it is the unbelievable effect that music has on me; people who wield that subtle power will always be an inspiration to me, no matter how stupid or naive that is. To be part of the one thing I hold most dear would be exactly what I’d do with a second life or two.
I like this question because it doesn’t specify whether you change subtle parts of your own life or re-imagine a whole new life to be born in to. I imagine most people will make an assumption about the question without even thinking about it; I did, Kayley did.
I’m not sure if there’s anything in my own history that I’d change. Sure, there’s a few things I wish didn’t happen, or happened differently, but there’s no single event inseparable from the whole which I could remove without causing permanent damage to my present self. And my present self could be a lot worse.
One thing I would change: keeping my options open, in terms of career / academic expectations. It’s one thing to know you can still change form your planned path, another to truly believe it. So much unnecessary worry and just time spent thinking has been caused by not accepting life’s volatility. Our interests and aspirations are to a large extent uncontrollable. Message to younger self: Just accept straight away that your goals have changed rather than clinging on to your own projected model for the sake of reliability. It’ll fall apart sooner or later, might as well take control before it gets out of hand.
While I would also love to be an Auror from Harry Potter[...]
Yes, of course this as well.
The best fantasy career for me would be magician I think. I’m thinking a cross between the magicians of D&D and those of Terry Pratchett. A slightly less capable Wizard in other words. I’d perfect some crazy invisibility spell and make money off sales on deviantart, using my invisibility to photograph people unobtrusively, perfectly. Just think, you could stand in front of a couple with your finger poised on the shutter for 10 minutes. In my mind this isn’t creepy…
Of course, there’s always the lighthouse operator. I’ve linked to this comic before in this blog, but no matter. It’s worthy of a double post :)
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