Six-year-olds are Quite Silly by Elyssa

Six-year-olds are Quite Silly by Elyssa - June 2017 Scholarship Essay

I was in first grade and there were about thirty other children in my class. It was the first career day at school we had ever had. Some parents of the students who were in my class came in to talk about what they do for a living. One woman was a nurse, and another was an accountant. One man was a firefighter, and another man was a surgeon. During the adult’s speeches, every little six-year-old looked up at them with wide, glossy, and admiring eyes. I remember sitting in my small desk with so many different ideas going through my head about what profession sounded the most fun. It is really silly to think that a six-year-old believes that a job is easy to get and fun to have all the time (I know now that is not the case). Anyway, at the end of the career day presentations, the first grade teacher asked the entire class to consider what we wanted to be when we grow up, because later we would go around the room and tell the entire class our ideal profession. I had about eight minutes to go through all of my possible answers; some included police officer, teacher, athlete, or doctor. I was so indecisive about what I wanted to be; it was hard to choose just one. One by one, each student told the entire class what they wanted to be when they grow up. It was getting to be my time to tell the class, and yet I was still so indecisive on my answer. It was the boy sitting next to me who was now answering, and as he was telling the class that he wanted to be an astronaut my answer became clear! It was my turn, my teacher asked me, “Elyssa, what do you want to be when you grow up?” I stood up, looked at the class, and with absolute seriousness I told the class I wanted to be a racecar driver! A racecar driver? Was I really serious? Yes, as a six-year-old I really believed I would be a racecar driver who would drive a pink car. My back-up plan at that time was to be a teacher (which is more likely). After I told the entire class that I wanted to be a racecar driver, the adults started giggling and the other students in the class looked at me with wonder. For the rest of the day, my friends were asking me all about being a racecar driver; I told them I was really going to race cars when I got older. A racecar driver; that is quite a stretch.
From elementary school to middle school, then to high school, what I wanted to be when I grew up changed each year. As nice as being a racecar driver sounds, there was no way that I would be able to do that as my career. So, my idea of an ideal career changed throughout the years from teacher, to fashion designer, and finally to physical therapy; which is what I will pursuing, majoring in Applied Physiology and Kinesiology at the University of Florida, and later to Graduate school to get my Doctor in Physical Therapy degree. It is amazing to think that I started the decision process with the idea that I was going to pursue racing and now I am starting to pick my classes for my first year in college to study Kinesiology. In high school, I began to understand what interested me the most; the way the human body works. I have been playing sports for many years and saw a physical therapist once to get exercise recommendations for a hurting shoulder. Seeing the physical therapist also influenced my decision in going into physical therapy as a career. Although I am not pursuing racing cars, as six-year-old Elyssa would have liked to do; I do believe that she would be proud in my decision and my successes.