Dreams Come True - And Sometimes They Change.

Hypothesis: I've realized something as of late. I'm beginning to notice that the things we dream of as children somehow switch directions entirely and even by the time you're in your twenties, those dreams fade and your life becomes completely opposite of what your dream was.
Here is why I think this:
Exhibit A: My sister. Let's call her Anna (Not her actual name). Anna grew up in the books. By the age of 7, she was reading novels like a sixth grader. She was my hero. She always was. She was always the perfect daughter. She was the perfect student, and she was the perfect older sister. She was everything I wanted to be, and more. As we grow older, this still holds true. But for many different reasons.
When we were kids, I admired her because she seemed to be the pride and joy of my mother and I seemed to be the constant screw-up. I admired her because she was so good at everything. She was a hard worker. She was constantly getting great marks in school, she was athletic and she was beautiful. Now, though, she is married, has a beautiful baby girl and a lovely home on the outskirts of the city.
So, what changed? Life, I guess. See, as a child, she was driven to be a career-oriented independent woman. Probably because that's what mom was. Mom didn't need a man in her life to make it complete, so why would Anna? This makes complete and utter sense. About three quarters through her Chemical Physics degree, though, Anna fell in love and got married. We were all so proud of her. Her goal switched. She had fallen in love. As she was 21, I suppose her goals changed. Now she is happy with her family and her husband's career goals seem more important to her than her own. Interesting how her dreams of a career changed to the aspirations of mother and wife. Something she never imagined that she would want.
Exhibit B: Me. Growing up, I always wanted to be a mother. I don't know what it is. Even watching home movies, I have a baby in my arms (not a real one, obviously). I cared for those dolls like they were real children until I was thirteen and I hid them away so I wouldn't get made fun of. At 17, I took a parenting class in which we got (some would say had) to take home a mechanical baby, wake up at night to its cries and treat it like an actual child. Needless to say, I'm pretty sure I'm one of the very few who took this assignment seriously. My dream my whole life has been to fall in love, get married, have babies and make house for my husband. As I turned 21, I realized, this will never happen. I've had only one serious boyfriend and that just ended. Now, I am 22 and I have no direction in my life because I have been awaiting Mr Perfect. So, now that I have come to this realization that love and children won't just happen for me, I have decided to focus on my career. I need to switch my focus from the happy family that I have longed for (and will continue to long for until I am an 85-year-old spinster) my whole life to having a career and some sort of focus in my life.
As a child, I was depressed. As a teenager, I was confused and angry (symptoms of depression). As an adult, I finally sought help. I am 22 and I have nowhere to go. I am going back to school after four years of dead end jobs and living on minimum wage (which is near impossible). I have decided where I want my career to go. I want to help kids and teenagers suffering from depression. Too many children are told that they are rebellious and "bad children", teenagers are told they are "angry" and have "issues". But nobody is there to help them through their issues. I find teenagers are blamed for their problems rather than being helped to learn the root of the problem. They then become frustrated, saddened, disheartened adult losers. (I say that because I am one). Perhaps my mothering heart was put in place for such a career as this. To help, not just my own children, but those of other people. I need to help fight childhood depression so that their futures aren't as bleak as mine.
Conclusion: Sometimes, we may start out our journeys dreaming of one thing, but life is interesting in that it sometimes will throw a curveball and leave us wanting (and getting) something completely different that will leave us more fulfilled than we could ever have imagined.