When I was a child, I had many dreams. Some children grow up knowing exactly what they want to become, but mine was different. My career choices depended on the day and, sometimes, my mood. Some days, I wanted to be a doctor. On other good days, I wanted to be a teacher. And on days when my mama made me angry, I wanted to become a police officer so I can arrest her😂.
But as I grew older, I discovered a hidden skill in myself. I was attracted to electricity, and I loved fixing faulty small machines. I thought I had finally found my calling. I wanted to become an electronic engineer because, in my mind, if I could fix machines, then engineering was obviously for me.
Then one day, I got electrocuted by a rechargeable torchlight I fixed, It was God that saved me that day. I changed my career choice immediately. I decided I would still become an engineer, but this time, I would choose civil engineering. At least, I thought, I would have nothing to do with electricity.
In secondary school, I had two friends, Favour and Geraldine, who shared the same ambition. The three of us wanted to become engineers. Because of this ambition, we went for counselling on our subject combinations. We were advised to add Geography and Computer Science to our regular subjects, and we did.
As WAEC approached, we started studying together. One day, Favour brought a Geography past-question paper because we had hardly studied Geography. From what we had been taught in class, Geography seemed simple. But the questions in that past paper were a completely different story. They looked so difficult!
Still, we told ourselves, “Since engineering is our dream, let's study hard.”
Then one day, I had a conversation with an engineering student. He told me that if I wanted to study engineering, I had to be good at calculations and technical drawing. Gosh I hated technical drawing.
That statement, combined with the Geography saga, was enough to make me reconsider my life choices.
I told my friends, and Ogochukwu and I said, “We are not doing engineering again ooo!” Favour, remained determined. She was still going to become an engineer.
As for me, I changed Geography to Agricultural Science and continued with life.
Eventually, I gained admission to study Human Nutrition and Dietetics. Today, I am a nutritionist.
Interestingly, becoming a nutritionist was never part of my childhood dreams. I didn't dream of wearing a lab coat and talking about food, nutrients, or people's health. Yet, here I am, and I genuinely enjoy what I do.
I have not gotten a white-collar job in the nutrition field yet because I only concluded my studies this year. But I already feel fulfilled knowing that my profession gives me an opportunity to contribute to people's health and well-being. Funny enough, my younger sister took up the dream I abandoned. She is currently studying Civil Engineering. Maybe the engineering dream is incompletely lost.
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