“When I grow up, I want to be . . . “
Wow, there’s so much in these few words for me.
Having to ‘grow up’, suggesting a necessity to leave some of me behind that no longer serves me as an adult, the childlike fun, whimsy, starting a game of 20–20 in, then rollerskate tig, to being the architect of my latest town plan, port and railway system made out of lego.
To then choosing ‘1 thing’ to be. From a young age I knew this was a jolly important question the oldlings wanted an answer for, so I decided my answer was “I want to be a lego designer”, knowing that sounded ridiculous and not ever expecting it to happen (while actually secretly hoping it would). If we’re sharing secrets I’d also like to be Ironman. Ok, and Thor too.
Funny when I look at it now — Lego got me my job at IBM. In the intensive tests and hoops to test our metal and worth as a potential IBMer back in 2000, one of the last activities after days of the usual personal aptitude tests and interviews and wotnot was a group exercise to build tower out of lego. It was the first time I remember stepping into my leadership, this painfully quiet young chap, stood up and said “I got this! I know what we need to do.” And that day, through lego, they saw something in me that I’d not experienced in myself before.
Fast forward 20+ years and last year I became a man. Seems it’s rather common in fact in the western world these days, somewhere between 40–45 for boys to step into adulthood and take responsibility. And oddly this big question has caught up with me again as I look to re-invent my career and an income.
Although the question is morphing somewhat from that rather base stereotype of a question.
Certainly, I do not intend to do any more ‘growing up’. Quite enough of all that pretending to be an adult thank you very much for this lifetime.
And, I feel the question is; “now that I’ve remembered who I am, my self, how do all my life experiences to date add up as signposts for where to go (and not go) because it’s all been there for e reason? How do I remember what I’m here to do?”
What do you want to be when you grow up? Can you be that now and grow up later?
I’m going to load that into my sleeping head processor,
Big Love, K
[this tune just kept ringing in my head as I wrote and wanted to come along with this post]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Y82wktAEmQ
[Song: When I grow up, featured in Matilda the Musical]
