Take Your Pick: Do What You Love or What You Can’t Bear
I was talking to a friend of my daughter who is a junior in high school about her future plans. She told me that she really loves filmmaking, but will probably go into something practical instead, like physics, which she hates. I’m not sure of how much she was kidding me, but since I have one teenager who will be going to college soon, and another who is already there, I hear a lot these days about the practicality of various career choices. I met this particular girl, the one who loves film, when she was seven years old and I was volunteering in my daughter’s classroom. When I first saw her, I could see the brilliance that was behind her eyes. The thought of all of us not getting to see her movies because she wants to be practical really upsets me.
On the other hand, what absolutely delights me is meeting somebody who loves his or her work. In my last blog entry, I wrote about the glorious Ferragamos that I bought at a consignment store. The owner of the place is somebody who is doing just the right kind of work. She loves and has a wonderful eye for the clothing and also enjoys the customers. If you are ever in Greenwich, Connecticut, the name of the store is Consigned Designs by Ellen.
I wonder what kind of a world it would be if we all felt like Ellen at the consignment shop, and just loved our jobs. We all know that this is not the case. The person who manages the thrift store that’s right around the corner from where I live is miserable and grouchy and makes shopping so unpleasant that I’ve stopped going there altogether. Perhaps she’s a frustrated filmmaker who somehow wound up selling secondhand clothing.