When I was in first grade of middle school, I bought my first MP3 player. Its 128 MB memory only allowed me to listen to music for a maximum of one hour, but it was enough to get me through the daily school commotion. One day, during a literature class, the teacher (if I’m not mistaken) appeared in front of me after calling my name several times without me hearing her. I took off my headphones quietly. Although I wasn’t facing a mortal threat with my good grades, her perplexed gaze was intolerable. Apparently, he asked everyone what they wanted to be in the future. Each gave an answer; of course, they all had one common characteristic, being a member of the array of doctor, engineer, or pilot. When he asked me what I wanted to be, I replied, “I don’t know.” he said, “You’re in the worst possible situation among these kids.” I still don’t know what I want to be, but I don’t think any of those kids have become doctors, pilots, or engineers.

PS: Recently, I saw a friend from that time who recognized some of the kids from back then and told me about their not-so-good fate, which prompted me to reminisce and write this piece.