A letter from a self confessed dreamer

To Whom It May Concern,

Let me start by introducing myself. My name is Darcy and I am a 20-year-old final semester university student. For the last 3 years I have been studying business with a major in accounting and a sub major in Chemistry at a well-known Sydney University. Simultaneously I have been working various jobs to support myself and save enough fund my month long trip to Europe last July.

I am intelligent, If you will allow me to say so myself, even if my recent academic results don’t always show it. I’ll admit, I don’t always apply myself to my full potential and there are no real excuses I can make for this fact.

As I said, I am in my final semester of university, final two subjects in fact, and so I find myself in the position where I am asking: what comes next? Where do I go from here?

For part if the summer break just passed I completed a summer internship at a major accounting firm. The people were nice, I appreciated the experience and I completed my work well (or so I have been told) and I was subsequently offered a graduate position starting in 2011. Here is the catch; I don’t think I want to be an accountant, even in the broadest sense of the word. Yet, everyone I know, everyone I meet keep telling me to just take the graduate job and do my CA (Chartered Accountancy qualification). They say, and I quote “the hours are long and the pay is shit and they chew you up and spit you out. But once it’s done (3 years) you will be able to get a ‘better’ job, earn a lot of money and then travel if you wish.”

But, when does it stop? Or more accurately, when does it start? My life that is, when am I allowed to start living my life? And what does a ‘better’ job mean anyway?! More money? Well that’s another whole issue all together. Maybe I have gotten a little ahead of myself here.

You see, while I do not consider my family or myself to be rich (but then who do you know who would actually admit such a thing?), I am definitely much better off than many others. My parents are still together and have provided me with a loving, stable upbringing. I have never needed to worry about the roof over my head, the bills being paid or anything of any seriousness really. I have travelled overseas on my own money twice in the last 5 years, bought myself a laptop, drive one of the family cars, have a contract for my iPhone, and am currently living what many would call a leisurely lifestyle at the family home with no rent.

I have almost everything I could possibly want, and yet I am bored by it. Actually I’m not 100% sure that bored is the right word in this instance, its just that it is a strong word that implies an element of dissatisfaction. I suppose that what I’m really trying to get at here. I’m not satisfied, all of this stuff doesn’t leave me feeling fulfilled and if I don’t feel fulfilled now then it seems to me that it would be naive to believe that more ‘stuff’ i.e. a better job with more money (and lets not forget about more responsibility and time at the office) will help the situation any.

Please dear reader, do not get the impression that I am simply a lazy gen Y’er who has been mollycoddled and spoilt her whole life, full of entitlement and her own self-importance. I am willing, more than willing in fact to do the hard work. I want to contribute to society, I want to be part of it. I want to do my part! More than my part even I just don’t see where I’m supposed to start, or, using my earlier job reference, how the jobs available to me really help people. As I said, telling me that if I take this now I will have future prospects of more money just won’t cut it. Then again, maybe I am displaying a few of the gen Y traits in that I seem to be searching for more immediate results.

I believe that what I am searching for is some kind of meaning. I don’t believe that life should begin after 5 (or 6, or 7 for that matter). I’ll admit I’m a little lost and confused, I just want something to change, I want my life to start. Am I expecting too much? Can so many people be wrong? Why do others do it? Or is this really just some sort of backlash against… what? What do I have to backlash against? My life is good but I’m in a rut, not moving forward or backward and the lights are off.

So, why do I write this? I suppose I’m asking for your help, or input of some sort. Any opinions you would like to share? Can you shed some light? Make a suggestion? (Even if it is only: grow up and move on).

Yours Sincerley,

Darcy.