When are supposed "to know"?

I was just wondering. There is something about American culture where we ask kids, often times when they are children-"What do you want to be when you grow up?" As a high school teacher, I see teachers asking their students what their major will be in college leading these students to really think about what they want to do with their lives. I personally think that this is the biggest mistake that you could do to a college bound high school student. I mean how is a 17 year old kid supposed to figure out what they are going to do with their life? I have friends who are ranging from the ages of 24-34 who still don't know what they want to do with themselves.

So what ends up happening is these kids go to college and all their minds are on is what they are going to "become". Never leaving their minds on the present moment. Never taking college for what it should be in my opinion-which is an opportunity to learn! So we end up with economics majors or pre-law or pre-med majors. The common question being asked to someone who revelas their major is- "So what are you going to do with that?"

Maybe it's just this capitalistic regime that we are in. But college for me was so much about potential job opportunities as opposed to actual learning and upliftment through knowledge. And so 2 changed majors, 5 years, and about $40,000 later I graduated with a degree in Religious Studies. And no... I am not a priest or anything like that. But I have to say I enjoyed the remainder of college when I was actually learning something. And this brings me to my post question. When are we supposed "to know" what we want to do or what we want to become.

I am asking because for about the past 8 years of my life I have known that I wanted to be a teacher. But high school teaching has become an embarked journey that has left me knowing that this is not what I want to do for the rest of my life. So I'm just wondering because the question of this post is the burning question that my self and almost all of my friends are yearning to answer. And I figured that after 28 years of breath in this existence, I would have more of a clue. But many days, I feel like I am back at square on trying to answer the very same question of-"What do you want to become when you grow up?"

Shit... It feels crazy because I have to answer this question again, but I'm all grown up now. So maybe I should panic. Or maybe I should just not care and let things fall where they may. I know the answer lies in between both of these extremities. But I just thought i would know by now.

Inception

So I have now found another way to procrastinate and spend even more time in front of my MacBook. Hopefully this will be something of substance. I would like to share some thoughts-unfortunately right now there aren't any. So I will leave y'all with a poem. Here it is:

WHAT IS POETRY?

What is poetry?
Poetry is the expression of light and freedom
Seeing the light is opening up vision that
You thought you never had before
Seeing with a third eye
That makes you see truth
Words bringing freedom
That guards you with liberty
Against the enslavement of your mind
Don’t let them fool you
Don’t let them fool you
This capitalist regime wants you
To stay a corporate slave
Billboards plastering ads
With Nike, Coca-Cola, and Ipods
Is the same thing as when they told Africans
That a better life awaited them in the new world
But “Mr. Amado, the new Ipod comes with better battery life and different colors”
Man, I don’t care if that Ipod is gonna come with
A Laker girl that does your homework
It’s all just a plot to keep us slaves

So what are ways we can fight this system
Through Art
Through Hard Work
Through Love and
Through always keeping our minds open

You see they’re even trying to enslave hip hop
Taking knuckleheads off the street
Putting chains around their necks
Which are like chains around their feet
You see I don’t want to
Catch Chamillionaire ridin dirty
Cause the only thing dirty about him
Is his jacked up lookin teeth
With all that gold in it
I mean how you supposed to keep your breath fresh with a grill?

There’s not enough poetry
In the music these days
Music needs more poetry these days
Music should never be a gimmick
Just sounding the same

Now no offense to anyone “emo”
But I wanna get those “emo” singers
Some nasal spray so they could start singing better
And not sound the same

All I’m trying to do
Is to get you to see that
There is still art left in this world
Art that does what it is supposed to do
Which is to open you up
Art that opens you
To what is beautiful
To what we could change
To where we are
And to where we need to go

So what is poetry
Poetry is me
Poetry is you
Poetry is we
Let me say it again
Poetry is me
Poetry is you
Poetry is we

So poetry is one tool to help bring change
Poetry is one jewel to help rearrange
That state of mind that keeps us in confusion
Poetry is one way we can have a solution
To end this madness and to start a revolution
Poetry wants to come back and is so fed up
So if you’re down for this, then it’s time to STAND UP!