I'm OK, You're Paranoid

Can you imagine having to work hard at a particular ambition, only to have it taken from you in the name of "You can't be one because I am one" or "You can't become one because I could never become one"? Yes indeed, such incidences are real and can be damaging, especially if the person with the particular ambition desires it with all her heart and soul. Sometimes mentioning your ambitions to others wind up this way - no, more often than not, they wind up this way. Now take an opposite example: a person works hard at an ambition and is very quiet about it, not telling anyone at all until that person reaches the end of the goal successfully and happily. Yes, I fall into both of those categories, since my first ambition was to be fashion designer (obviously that is something that will never happen) and a poet (one of the nicest things about being a writer is you can use a pseudonym). Being smart enough to never use my real name for my poetry since most of the material is not for everyone, at least I could never be accused of "stealing" someone's ambition from them (indeed!). Maybe some people have the perception that jobs are finite, like natural resources such as clean water, air, and nutritious food, yet they are not mindful about contributing to the extreme consumption of the world's resources. In our increasing pro-natalist society, some innocent person like me who wanted to "dress up" the world at one time (and not in a burka, either) winds up on the receiving end of the confiscated, being told not to stand up for my rights (how is that for paranoia? Stepping all over someone then telling them off for having anything resembling integrity is the mentality of the mentally ill, a cowardice that is more likely than not to alienate others (exactly how many friends do paranoid people have?) and spread the "Misery loves company" nonsense. I suppose it is not enough our world suffers severe overpopulation while children in Angola starve to death while their government confiscates food from tiny mouths. Gee, now that line sounds familiar. But a career? Just who in their right mind (oops, I forgot they are not in their right mind at all) prohibits someone from honest work and from reaching her goals? To top that off, being told "you don't want to be a fashion designer; you'd be happier getting married and having a half dozen babies" (I would not a good parent make) since our society still regards females as second-class citizens with limited rights. Given the above criteria in mind, had I said I wanted to get married at the age of 8 and have 30 babies by the time I was 14, guess what? Nobody would have protested that. Nobody ever protested Nadia Suleiman and she has had quite a few babies in the past 10 years of her life.

So, what do you do the next time you have lofty goals but know those around you will hold you down in the name of love? Be quiet, go about your career that requires the education you know you need, plus any internships, and feel good about your personal successes. People who get to the top quietly are better respected than those who constantly chatter about their goals, which can indeed turn others off, not to mention make them believe you are all talk and not a person of action. See you at Children Churches and Daddies, my friends.

Disclaimer: even though this article does contain true facts about my life, the rest should be taken with a grain of salt.