I wanted to change the world. A couple years ago, as I sat in my room in my mother's house, staring at the speckled stucco ceiling, I contemplated the past two years of my life along with the five (yes, FIVE) times I changed my major. What did I want to do with my life? There was no straight answer. I wanted to pursue everything that interested me. And I was successful.. in the sense that I got to dabble a bit in every field that my happy heart desired to. But the clock was ticking and with every semester that annoying little question haunted my mind space. What did I want to do with my life? I wasn't sure. The only thing I knew was.. I wanted to change the world.
Or at the very least, make some sort of impact, on someone, something, to make my existence meaningful, while satisfying my insatiable thirst for knowledge and exploration.
I wanted to change the world. But I thought money should be important too. Long gone were the days where I desired to live a bohemian lifestyle, playing piano for a measly income at glitzy dive bars, drinking wine with friends on the weekends and living a simple and modest, yet fulfilling lifestyle. I grew up (just a little bit) and the responsible side of me chose to pursue marine biology so I could work to make a difference in the world's oceans and still make a decent enough income. I loved chemistry and biology, I loved marine life, and I could make a pretty penny. Win win, right?
But it was never about money. It should never be about money. While taking my biology classes, I took a creative writing class and my teacher thought the world of my writing (or at least she acted like it). She encouraged me to pursue a writing career and seemed crushed when I told her I wasn't. It surprised me that I could be so good at something that came so easy for me. What could I achieve when I actully worked really hard at it? Biology and chemistry came really easy for me too, but all the lab books and experiments in the world couldn't give me the same feeling I felt when I finished a really good essay, or a great blog post, or a moving journal entry. So I changed my major and joined the school newspaper.
GREAT. GOOD. "I'm on the right track now!" I thought to myself cheerfully. When I was at school I was happiest in the newsroom, interviewing people and writing stories. Yes! I was great at this. And for once I was 100% sure of what I wanted in life.
But then came that question. At family parties and social events.. "What's your major?" Journalism, I would respond, but I never got the reaction I got when I told people I was a bio major. There wasn't that slight giddy inflection in the voice when people would respond "Oh! You're a bio major!" and instead I was met with a touchy acknowledgement and awkward silence. What? This confused me. I'm a Leo, I'm not used to this type of unattention.
Whatever.
I wanted to change the world.
Why don't majors like art and communication get as much respect and recognition as the sciences do? I feel as if society thinks that these are throwaway majors; I do not feel so. I feel as if they contribute equally to the world. Sure, biology and chemistry majors do a lot of work and it takes a lot of energy to comprehend the material. It also takes a certain amount of brainpower to use that information in a useful way. Art and communications does this too, but instead of facts, it dismantles and studies ideas. You can't just look at a piece of art and understand it, or read a great piece of fiction and be able to disseminate its plot and major themes. An understanding of art and literature and its contexts is an understanding of the human condition. An understanding of the human condition can help spur a change in consciousness. And that's what I wanted to do.
I'll admit there are a handful of bad apples out there who call themselves "journalists" and give the profession a bad name (I'm lookin' at you, Fox News), but if I can work for a reputable media outlet, and create just one article that will change your way of thinking for the better, than I would have done my job. Kindling sparks into a fire, and that is how I will change the world.
To put this whole thing in perspective, here is a quick interview I did with a good friend of mine, Jorrel Batac, on the subject of art as a major. You can find links to his extensive library of work here.
If you LOVE what you see, he has a photobook called Wake Dream Sleep coming out soon. You can pre-order it by emailing jorrel@aindividual.com
xx, LC
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