Dreams and Realities

As the son of Pakistani immigrants, my family has always emphasized the importance of family values, respect, and sincerity. From a young age, they instilled in me the significance of strong character, and that meant maintaining integrity in all that I do, whether it be important moral obligations or everyday mannerisms.

Although the pressure of living up to such high expectations can be strenuous at times, I’ve always believed that the values my parents imparted were worthy of aspiring to. With regard to choosing an occupation, they have always steered me towards a practical career that ensures future financial stability, such as engineering or computer science. Of course, this made sense to me for the bulk of my life. However, attending a multicultural high school with people from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds and various future goals has since opened my eyes to other possibilities.

I recall a conversation that I had with a classmate as we were discussing college applications and our future plans. “So what colleges are you looking into?” I asked him. “I need to keep looking, but I definitely want to go somewhere with a good music program,” he responded. “I want to become a music producer and make beats for a famous artist one day.” Similar to this classmate, I was always interested in music and enjoyed making songs in my school’s music production class. I enjoyed the freedom and creativity that music entailed - the freedom that average nine to five jobs lacked. But when I brought up the possibility of a career in music, my parents had quickly suggested I rethink, citing the lack of job security and the amount of luck required to make a hit song. “What did your parents say when you told them?” I asked my classmate. He replied, “I haven’t told them — it doesn’t matter what they think about that anyway.” I was taken aback but immediately asked, “You don’t care what they think?” “I do. I just know that this is what I want to do with my life,” he said.

I was impressed by his certainty but had to dig deeper to find out how he was so sure of himself. During our conversation, he told me about how his parents did not play a big role in his life and that he lived with his aunt. Music was a passion he shared with her and although she was skeptical about him pursuing a career in music, she supported him. He told me he wanted to become successful so that he could help her in the future.

From our conversation, I examined myself and thought about my own future goals. While it made sense to me to listen to my parents and seek a career that ensured financial stability, I wasn’t completely sure if doing so would make me content with my life. I realized that I had to ensure that I feel fulfilled from the work I end up doing, for money and job security without a sense of fulfillment would merely breed resentment. Although I’m still not sure exactly what my future will look like, I hope to enter a career where I am able to work with people and learn from others on a daily basis.

Mubasshir Mumtaz is a senior at the Scholars’ Academy in Rockaway Beach, New York and a Next Gen Summer Civic Fellow. He has always been interested in politics - a means by which society can wholly progress. He has always wanted to pursue a career which involves helping others.