Free falling

We are all born with a sense of purpose, all of us announce our arrival into this world with a loud cry and a constant demand for attention. We were all once a bundle of curiosity, peering at faces and objects unknown to us with unbridled enthusiasm and we approached everything we had discovered with a joy and pride akin to the pride that Christopher Columbus must have displayed when he discovered the "New World", alike in the fact that we were also not the foremost discoverers.
Still, we managed to enthrall people and drown in their attentions by doing exactly the same things that millions of babies before us had done. Its the enthusiasm and childish innocence we displayed that gave our every action a magical quality to it and brought laughter to all those around us. We ventured forward like brave warriors out on a mission and tried valiantly to put one step in front of the other and once we succeeded, we were given rewards that would have befitted a king.
So, when did we lose that courage, that spark of independence that once prompted us out of our cradles onto the ground and then finally on our feet? When did we lose that glorious sense of delight that used to light up our eyes and fill us with a sense of wonderment at the mere sight of a butterfly? When did we grow up and why??
I feel sad when I think about today's youth. We have all been pushed around like puppets in a play, the only difference is that we feel those pushes, we feel the hurt. I am a happy girl today, working hard and trying to fulfill all my dreams, but I was just as confused a few months ago. I was reminded of that feeling today, when a young man who had just completed his Mechanical Engineering Degree came for an interview to our company. He wanted to shift from his mechanical background into an Electronics or Software background. His dilemma brought vividly to my mind the emotional trauma a young man/woman might go through when they are unsure about their career and their future life.
And there are too many students out there who are confused, who have a large burden of expectations on their shoulders which even Atlas would have found heavy to bear. So why can't we all be left loose? Why can't we all just be freed from all bonds of obligations that compel us towards a tedious life that gives neither satisfaction nor contentment?? It is a question all parents must ask themselves.
I can enumerate so many cases of students who are being forced into streams they don't have any interest in but they are sacrificing their free wills unconsciously to fulfill their obligations either towards parents or towards society. When did the world come to this? Do we truly want our future scientists, doctors and engineers to be apathetic towards their professions? Is it so important to have a child who has passed through one of the IIT's or AIM's rather than having a kid who is joyously and interestedly earning his living in an environment that he finds stimulating.
You cannot imagine how sad I feel when I look at a soul that should have been rejoicing in the glory of being born, in the glory of his ability to fulfill his dreams but instead is feeling the unmitigated sorrow of being bound in a train to a destination predetermined for him by others. That my dear friends is just not fair......
Our beautiful childhood should have been the launch pad to a carefree life where we would steer our own planes like valiant pilots into unchartered territories to write new chapters in history. Aim high dear friends, fly high, each one of us has obligations, but our foremost obligations lie towards ourselves. I love this song:

And then a hero comes along,
With the strength to carry on;
And you cast your fears aside,
And you know you can survive.

So when you feel like hope is gone,
Look inside you and be strong;
And you'll finally see the truth;
That a hero lies in you.