Have I Really Grown Up?

Or am I just pretending…

Photo by Davi Mendes on Unsplash

I’ve grown older but have I matured? In some ways, I have but when I’m talking to my school friends, we come to the conclusion we still feel like we are 17, not 70. Pity about the aging body though.

What career did I want to pursue? I didn’t really know exactly what path I wanted to follow. It’s sad but I was equally good at maths and chemistry as I was at history, geography, French and English. So what to do? I thought about becoming an industrial chemist. I loved chemistry!

I thought about becoming a diplomatic interpreter and travelling the world. I topped my year in French and learned languages more easily than most people. One of my classmates wound up being an Australian ambassador to a foreign country. I can’t remember where.

My third choice was kindergarten teaching. That almost happened.

My fourth choice was physical education teaching. I was an above-average swimmer and played most sports – none of them exceptionally well except netball and volleyball. I couldn’t run fast to save myself. I almost completed the course until my belly got too big and round.

So which of these did I become? None.

I went the easiest route and started teaching primary school. I quit full-time teaching when baby number 5 was…