When you were little, what did you want to be when you grew up?

News Anchor. Growing up I devoured books. I loved to read. Anything. Could be a novel or the newspaper or the paper packet in which parcel idlis came in. Words fascinated me. Still does though not the way it used to. The side effect of reading so much was that I had an intuitive feel for words and pronunciations at least of the English kind. In school I loved the English class right down to exams. This was one subject where I did not need to sweat or even make an effort. I loved it and it made all the difference.

So, naturally when grandpa used to watch the English news at night, I would sit right beside following the accents and words. Loved how they rolled off the newscaster’s tongue. Somewhere between my seventh and tenth grades, I had made my mind up. I wanted to be a news anchor. Someone who read the news flawlessly. Someone who would be a standard for others. I remember vividly picturing myself on TV reading news with a serious expression on my face. Doling out grim stuff without a trace of expression.

I have no recollection of when that dream died a silent death. When I finished school, I remember wanting to be a journalist for a while. Somewhere between then and the start of my IT career, life happened and dreams were traded in for anything that would get me out of the house and on my feet.

Looking back, I wonder if I still have a ‘thing’ for news anchors. Not sure anymore. Perhaps because I realize the amount of work that goes behind what appears on Media or perhaps I have wizened up to know what has to stay a dream?

What was your dream growing up?