The Daily Times

Growing up, there were no limits to the places my imagination took my future plans.

Initially, I wanted to be a teacher, like my mother. I’ve always had a love of history and English, so I figured I would use that love to enrich young minds one day.

Then, I hit my teens. My middle-school years were spent planning a future in law. I didn’t want to be a defense attorney, though. I wanted to be a prosecutor and throw the bad guys behind bars for years. It might have been the hours spent watching “Matlock,” “Perry Mason” and “Law and Order.” The original L&O, mind you. When I was a kid, there was only one.

While I was planning a real career, I also had my dreams. I was a theatre nut in middle school and high school and had hopes I could one day make a living at it. Putting me on a stage was my opportunity to let everything go and lose myself in a role, whether comedic or serious.

Watching the Oscars the other night, I was reminded of watching awards shows as a kid and prep time spent in a mirror as I gave my acceptance speech for the multiple trophies I would pick up. I thanked God, family and of course, the Academy for recognizing my hard work and talent.

My plans didn’t include the small screen, as I was certain I would be a star of the silver screen. Robert Redford, Johnny Depp and all of the studly men of Hollywood would vie for the coveted role of being my co-star. We won’t even go into all the many men with which I would be romantically linked. Hey, when I dream, I dream big.

Settling back into reality, I had my first journalism class my freshman year of high school. We covered the Watergate scandal of Richard Nixon’s presidential administration, and I was hooked. The journalism bug had bitten me, and I set forward on the path that has led me to where I am today.

Friday morning I had the opportunity to enrich and encourage young minds at a career fair at William Blount High School. I needed to be there at 8:30 a.m., which is a little earlier than normal for me, but I was determined to be on my best behavior.

While a lot of the kids seemed listless and still have no clue what they want to be when they grow up, it was interesting seeing young minds work as they tried to absorb the many businesses and ideas being thrown at them.

I did have a few kids ask me — much to my chagrin — what journalism was, and I did have some that seemed genuinely interested in learning more. Or at least learning a little.

We just hired a new employee at The Daily Times to work on our sports staff. She’s a recent college graduate and super excited to be getting into the career field. As I told someone earlier, she’s a sponge in her eagerness to learn and do well at the paper.

I’ve been at The Times for eight and a half years. It’s a crazy realization for me, as once upon a time I was just like our new employee. I was just 22 when I came to work in Maryville, and I was so full of youthful optimism.

I’m not quite so bubbly anymore. And probably not as nice as a young Amanda was, either. She was super eager to please and excited about a lot.

I’ve wondered, if I had to do it all over again, if I would make the same choices I made all those years ago. I can’t, in all honesty, say that I would. But then, I can’t say I wouldn’t either. We’re all on a journey through life, whether just beginning or a continuing daily trek.

I’ve still got a lot of choices to make. Marriage, babies, whether to dye my hair blue.

When those choices are made, you can read all about it right here.

Amanda Greever is assistant managing editor at The Daily Times. She writes a weekly column in the Sunday Life section. She can be reached at 981-1161 or (amanda.greever@thedailytimes.com) Follow her on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com _editor.