From Giraffeopologist to Mad Scientist: A Childhood Question Explored

As a child, we are usually asked one question very early on in life, in the moment we might not know but it one of the biggest questions we will ever be asked. What do you want to be when you grow up? Most children will say they want to be a doctor, teacher, police officer, etc. When I was asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, my answer would vary between giraffeopologist (the name I gave to people who studied giraffes), a witch, or a mad scientist.

My answer started to change the years passed, I grew older, became wiser and started to discover who I am and what I was really interested in, the human body and mind. At the age of thirteen I figured I had watched enough criminal minds to classify my self as a criminologist, but in march of 2013 I on a mission trip that completely changed my mind and made me certain that I wanted to be a part of doctors without boarders.

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First of all, I am going to take you back to 2011 when me and my family packed up and shipped off to south africa where my father grew up. We started in Capetown and journeyed all up the coast to Durban. On this trip I got the chance to see a lot of poverty and how much we take what we have for granted. From that moment on I knew I needed to do something that would make a difference.

When the opportunity arose for me to participate in a Habitat for Humanity mission trip I jumped at the offer, which led to me spending last march break in Hawaii. While exploring volcano national park with my group, a friend of mine fell on extremely sharp volcanic rock and was left with a large gouge on her knee, as she laid there in a dais I watched as the look of fear and panic made its way across all of my teachers faces, none of them knowing what to do. Being a person who works well under pressure I knew that I needed to help and my lifeguard training allowed me to do so. It was in that life changing moment, while I was applying pressure to this girl's wounds, that I started thinking about being a doctor.

Secondly, in the past year I have thought on and on about weather or not this is a good option for me and also if my school grades permit it… Not being a shining star in the class room doesn't exactly help you get into a medical programme. Also when I decided I wanted to be a doctor I didn't take into consideration the 8-12 years of schooling and all the different specialties all I knew was I wanted to cure people. Unfortunately I came to the harsh realization that my grades were not sufficient to make it into med school, but still I had the dream of helping people while exploring the world. I refused to give up. I finally came across a program that seems right for me, 4 years of fast learning paramedic training that allows you the knowledge to do field work in foreign countries helping those in need. I will start out close to home doing a 2-3 year partnership program with Humber college at UNB but also taking English classes at STU so if I decide that paramedics isn't for me I can always return to school to and learn how to teach English in foreign countries as a back up plan.

To conclude, I was raised in a very free spirited household, my parents have always known that I was meant to explore the world, they say I have a wandering soul and I must agree. The fact that i work well under pressure, have a desire to help this in need and my love to travel is how i knew paramedic field work was the thing for me. It feels good to know I can offer hope to people that have none.

Written by Daniel Rodriguez

Updated: Jan 18, 2024

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Updated: Jan 18, 2024