It’s important to be passionate about the line of work that one performs. Selecting a job solely because of its pay and benefits isn’t a good way to live life. Dave Isay’s book, entitled Callings, touches upon many people’s stories of finding a profession about which they are enthusiastic. However, some of the interviews throughout Dave Isay’s Callings stand out to me. A few of the stories within the novel present ideas that I agree with, whereas other interviews offer insight with which I don’t completely concur. More specifically, I have trouble agreeing with Thomas McGarvey’s account of becoming a dentist, but I easily see Paquita Williams’s perspective on life as she recounts her story of becoming a train conductor.
Undoubtedly, …show more content…
His father, an immigrant from Ireland, dies in a tragic mining accident when McGarvey is just six years old. McGarvey’s mother is left to care for thirteen children, and Thomas becomes financially responsible for himself after he graduates high school. College is never even a thought to McGarvey, who works as a mechanic to pay the bills. But, one day, a Navy recruiter comes into McGarvey’s mechanic shop. After conversing with the man, McGarvey goes and takes some tests, and the recruiter says that he could go to the Hospital Corps and become a dental technician. McGarvey soon discovers that he is enthralled with all things having to do with dentistry, and he loves observing the dentists at work. The part of McGarvey’s story that I partially disagree with is when he applies to dental school. He says “When I applied to school, I said ‘This is why I want you to accept me into your dental school: I am going to be a dentist whether you accept me or not.’ And I got in.” As much as humans think the sky's the limit, there are some things that are beyond our control. Some people want to become a surgeon, a professional athlete, or even the President of the United States. All of these professions are amazing and …show more content…
Early in her life, Williams wants to become a fashion designer. She graduates high school and studies pattern making at Fashion Institute of Technology in New York, where the professors tell every student that they will be the next best designer, which is simply not true. Williams is without a job when the season is finished, but she knows that income is necessary in order to pay the bills. Because of the need for revenue, she takes a job as a token booth clerk, and then in February of 2001, she becomes a conductor of a subway line. It’s here where she unexpectedly comes to love her job and the people that she meets because of it. William’s recounts a specific incident when the power went out on a train and the passengers were stuck underground in the subway. Williams explains how she tried to comfort everyone on the train, but the interviewer thought she did much more than console the upset passengers. “You made everybody on that train start talking with each other like human beings; we connected. I’ve been in New York for five years and never talked to strangers like that. It was just a great feeling.” Personally, I think that all people should follow Paquita William’s philosophy on life. Even in the darkest and bleakest of situations, it’s important to connect people and remain levelheaded. As an educator, it’s essential to be able to
Undoubtedly, …show more content…
His father, an immigrant from Ireland, dies in a tragic mining accident when McGarvey is just six years old. McGarvey’s mother is left to care for thirteen children, and Thomas becomes financially responsible for himself after he graduates high school. College is never even a thought to McGarvey, who works as a mechanic to pay the bills. But, one day, a Navy recruiter comes into McGarvey’s mechanic shop. After conversing with the man, McGarvey goes and takes some tests, and the recruiter says that he could go to the Hospital Corps and become a dental technician. McGarvey soon discovers that he is enthralled with all things having to do with dentistry, and he loves observing the dentists at work. The part of McGarvey’s story that I partially disagree with is when he applies to dental school. He says “When I applied to school, I said ‘This is why I want you to accept me into your dental school: I am going to be a dentist whether you accept me or not.’ And I got in.” As much as humans think the sky's the limit, there are some things that are beyond our control. Some people want to become a surgeon, a professional athlete, or even the President of the United States. All of these professions are amazing and …show more content…
Early in her life, Williams wants to become a fashion designer. She graduates high school and studies pattern making at Fashion Institute of Technology in New York, where the professors tell every student that they will be the next best designer, which is simply not true. Williams is without a job when the season is finished, but she knows that income is necessary in order to pay the bills. Because of the need for revenue, she takes a job as a token booth clerk, and then in February of 2001, she becomes a conductor of a subway line. It’s here where she unexpectedly comes to love her job and the people that she meets because of it. William’s recounts a specific incident when the power went out on a train and the passengers were stuck underground in the subway. Williams explains how she tried to comfort everyone on the train, but the interviewer thought she did much more than console the upset passengers. “You made everybody on that train start talking with each other like human beings; we connected. I’ve been in New York for five years and never talked to strangers like that. It was just a great feeling.” Personally, I think that all people should follow Paquita William’s philosophy on life. Even in the darkest and bleakest of situations, it’s important to connect people and remain levelheaded. As an educator, it’s essential to be able to