Is knowing about what you always wanted to do a good thing? Personally, I have been whacked by destiny trying to make definite stubborn choices since I was quite young.
My father, a typical " I don't want my kids to take the tough path" sort off business man wanted his daughter to barely finish schooling and join an oh so plush Interior Decoration course. To his dismay; I wasn't the kind of daughter he should have got.
Committed to making intricate puzzles ever since I was six instead of doll making, my dreams were kind of twisted according to him. By the time I entered 11th grade, my dreams became a nightmare for him. Interested in Biology and yearning to be a doctor my ambition didn't really fit well in my dad's business mind model. He considered my books to be equivalent to body building dumbbles and the content in them, a mere waste of paper resources. Although he never discouraged me but I always knew it didn't make him happy.
I died explaining; his arguments never sufficed. Ultimately I made up my mind to take defiance to the next level and told him that if he wasn't going to change his opinion, nor was I. Numerous upheavals at home and pissing off episodes made us each other's closest dopplegangers and worst enemies.
By the end of class 12, I was not only fighting the examinations battle alone but also the application threats. Talking to my dad's accountant more than anyone in my family, my applications were sealed and delivered and so were my expectations.
Compromising to come to common ground, I chose Manipal for a year. Closer to home (not really) and within constant reach (again not at all); the deal sounded legitimate to the MAN. A little detail about it being a twinning program was hidden. I can't forget my dad's words when I told him I got to leave for England; he said:" I wish your kids trouble you the same way like you have troubled me." Two long breathers and I swallowed the guilt with ease.
The years passed in a glimpse. Back home as an Engineer (succumbing to daddy's promise) I am doing something which did not require the amount of academics I had chewed over 4 years. In a recent conversation about the future and the babies; I was shocked to hear myself saying: I will never ask my kids to study as much as I did or even close. I wanted to reform those sentences but too late. The truth was on the table; clear and crisp. The cursed had worked I guess. I was so glad my parents weren't in the vicinity when I uttered those forbidden words!
The truth is one learns from experience and uses it so that our loved ones' experiences don't make them learn. Its like studying from a past papers guide for an exam. Yes you might score well but the chances are always dim. Everyone has to learn their own way whether its through a kick or a whack. Mine was a whack!
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