The Best Things in Life Don't Matter

They told me all my life
How, if I tried,
I could be anything I wanted to be, how I
Should never let anyone stop me.
 
          Careers in creativity awaited me, I thought.
          All I ever wanted to do was write.
          Naive as I was, I still believed
          That I could accomplish anything.
 
But then
Enthusiasm turned to doubt.
 
          How could I choose to chase such a dream,
          One that would never make me rich?
          Why would I want to be so impractical?
 
Winning, I was told, was significant.
Emotions, I was shown, were not.
Really, those who society loved were
Engineers, doctors, lawyers--anyone wealthy (and preferably hot).
 
          Maybe money should be my main concern,
          Even if it leaves me with a job I loathe.
          Adulthood, after all, is not supposed to be fun.
          No, we live in the world where
          The value of a person is measured only in green paper rectangles.
 
They told me I had potential, but apparently
Only for jobs they judge to be useful.
 
          Lying, they tell us to place happiness over money.
          Insincerely, they preach that anything is possible. But their
          Veiled motives reveal,
          Eventually, that joy will not pay the bills.

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