I’ve realized some very important lessons about my passions, about my interests, and about myself this last month in college.
You see, I thought that if I didn’t major in something tied directly with writing, I’d lose that part of me forever.
Recall that third grade fiction writing experience, and you’ll know I’ve been starstruck with words, language, and those associated human interactions for a nearly a decade.
And for someone who’s lived almost two decades, come next year, (where most of that beginning time was spent surrounded by stuffed animals and Graham Cracker crumbs), it’s incredible that nearly half of my time here on Earth has been devoted to the art of writing.
But entering college this spring semester, I knew that something about my approach to this passion just didn’t fit.
To be a traditional journalist –– a reporter –– you need to live and breathe adrenaline. The stakes are always so high, and everything (your reputation, your words, your sources’ reputation) are on the line.
I found that, yes, when pushed to my limit, I can exceed the expectations required to be an able-bodied journalist.
Was this where my other passions were leading me, though?
I’m an undeniable environmental advocate. I live and breathe sustainability, recycling, and repurposing. I tried incorporating that other immense passion of mine into a conjoined career path –– an environmental journalist.
But if I’ve learned one thing so far in 2015, it’s that not all of your interests, your passions, can nor should fit perfectly into one specific career destination.
I’m a consumer of news –– I like to stay informed, especially on science, technology, or international affairs. But was I turning this interest of mine, news, into a career, just because I’m a fan of it?
At the beginning of March, I felt like I was trying to shove all of my likes –– writing, videography, environment, news, science, photography –– into one, complete career path.
But I soon realized that, at the end of the day, I had nothing left that defined me as a person. I had made everything I was into a career goal, and had nothing left for pleasure, for leisure, for me.
So that’s why I’m now pursuing international, environmental policy communications. (A mouthful, I know.)
I’ve happily and whole-heartedly accepted that promoting sustainable environmental action is my calling, my purpose in life, if you will. That part of me will never die –– and will never be confined to the complete objectivism required of a traditional journalist.
If I get involved in communications outreach with environmental policy, who’s to say that I won’t be using my skills as a writer, as a speaker, as a filmmaker?
Just because those trades won’t be implied with my career title (who knows what that’s going to be, anyway) doesn’t mean I can’t utilize my interests, my hobby of story-telling in a non-traditional way.
Let me just tell my story more defiantly, with more resources, backed by an entire organization that promotes sustainability, as well.
Because I can’t just stay silent, or merely report the happenings on our environment, watching the world rapidly change when I could’ve done something proactive about it.
This passion cannot be quelled, and it is from here on that I intend to speak out for positive change in the environment, leaving news, science, and photography to serve as my general interests –– of which I would like to rekindle.
This post also appears on labellamemoir.tumblr.com
Bethany N. Bella 