Words by: Gabriela Fannia 
Art by: Emilia Bajer

Innocent wishes and boundless imagination, with a touch of hopefulness — that is what childhood dreams are made of. Funny how we don’t remember most things from the past (let alone last Monday’s dinner), yet a childhood dream will always have its place in a precious storage box, tucked inside the mind. 

I spoke to four people about their dream as a kid, and what they are doing today.

A Penny for Every Written Word

With a love of books and high marks in English class, Rebecca (21) hoped to be a novelist, and sometimes a cashier “because it looked like a lot of money, and it looks so satisfying scanning items and typing things”. 

“Once I got to high school, I realised being a novelist was impractical.” Living in Illinois, US, she is now completing her studies on Quantitative Economics and Communications.

Nevertheless, she is drafting her way through plenty of writing for a student-run newspaper. “I would still like to be a published author someday, although that dream has evolved,” Rebecca muses. “While I still love creative writing, I would most likely want to write something non-fiction or more academic… in an attempt to make some difference, hopefully for the better.”

Race Ya to the Startup Line

Straightforward and prompt, Jeff (24) is the kind of person you’d think would never miss a deadline. “I actually wanted to be a racecar driver,” he tells me. 

Always placing first or second in go-kart races and regularly watching The Fast and the Furious, he grew up obsessed with “anything that had wheels and was powered by a motor”.

Today, he and his high school friend run an electric scooter startup called Voltrium, and they aren’t hitting the brakes anytime soon — they plan to reach interstate markets. “I ended up in a sort of happy medium where I still get to work and tinker with motorised vehicles… and occasionally quench my inner child’s dream of piloting high-performance vehicles for a living.”

Taking Up Caretaking  

Mike (24) is patient, kind, and a good listener. As a kid, his father was his role model and inspired him to be a CEO. “I wanted to become a leader,” he tells me.

Despite three years of studying commerce, Mike found a passion he’d never thought he had in him: caretaking. Sometimes nocturnal, and often an early bird, he works through dusks and dawns as a nurse in an aged care facility in Vermont South. 

“I enjoy being there for vulnerable or sick people, and realising the little things I do can actually make their day,” he says. “That is what I find fulfilling in nursing.”

Leading the Ducklings 

As a little girl, Kezia (23) wanted to be a lot of things. “There was a point where I wanted to be a vet,” she remembers. The little girl who had a couple of rescued dogs and a tender heart thought, “it’d be nice to tend to sick animals”.  

Through twists and turns, Kezia believes that God’s providence brought her to where she is right now, a place she is truly passionate about. Now she is a teacher, and ‘Kezy’ to her classroom full of waddling little ones. 

“My heart for animals is still there, and in fact I talk about animals, their habitat and life cycles a lot with my students,” she says.

So, here’s to all who are hoping, just starting, in the midst, or on their way to fulfil their childhood dreams. Although the world changes so drastically, a kid’s dream is there to stay. And what about this writer, you ask? Well, I always hoped to tell a story that makes people smile. So if you are, dear readers, you just made this little kid’s dream come true.