A Little Life Wisdom

Writing about Professor Hallock's book in my earlier post reminded me of the time he invited me to visit his class and speak to his English Majors about the post-college life of an English Major. Ah, what fun it was to be surrounded by others who love literature that much! 

One of the stories I told them was about my initial inclination to be a Business Major. I had a vague idea that a career in the world of business would provide the income so that I could pursue my reading hobby on my own time. Get money, then buy books. Not a bad plan, I'd say!

However, when I attended freshman orientation, they quickly divided us into different advisory groups based on our majors. The person who spoke to us Business Majors handed out a schedule of  the classes we'd be taking and proceeded to tell us, "During your first three semesters, you'll be taking all your required courses. In the second semester of your second year, you'll get an elective. We suggest you take Typing."

I put up my hand and asked, "Where is Literature on this schedule? Where is Humanities?"

She said, "You don't have time for that."

I stood up and handed the paper back to her. "I'm not a Business Major," I said, politely and decisively. And I walked out the door.

I landed among the Undecideds and stayed there a while before settling on English and International Studies (two degrees, since I loved college and had enough credits for both).

Through a twist of fate I wound up in the legal world, and I've never looked back, even while living in various places, going back to school a few times, and holding a variety of jobs. It's all been good.

The theme of my talk to the English Majors was: Don't Be Afraid to Zigzag. 

Thanks to my focus on literature and art, I've known how to live, not just how to make a living. There's always been plenty of money for books.

And I already knew how to type, anyway!