Career — from a musician to a doctor
All the way through elementary school, I wished I could become a great musician. I went to an elementary school with an intensive music curriculum, learning to play piano and viola. Just like all my other classmates, I spent most part of my childhood practicing music, hoping one day I could perform on the world-renowned stage as a professional violist. I was only thirteen years old then, and I was passionate about what I was doing. I could stay in the practice room alone for hours, repeating small musical phrases for hundreds of times just to make it closer to perfection. I felt content when I had my viola in hands, and I was able to envision myself performing on the professional stage in front of thousands of audience. That is, I had a goal in mind, and this is extremely important no matter what you do.
After I came to America, I volunteered at a senior living residence which housed approximately 45 seniors diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. At first I was trying to think how I could serve these residents to the best of my ability. I decided to serve them through viola by playing old folksongs that they were familiar with. Most of the residents were not very responsive when I played at first, but after visiting the residents a few more times, I knew that my music had indeed touched them. I could felt their sentiments towards my music as I observed their responses: some laughed, some smiled, and some cried. To the residents, I was only a stranger when I first visited, but we gradually became close friends who shared happy and sad stories with each other. If my presence made them happy, I felt even more joyful myself. This kind of happiness is irreplaceable, and this kind of satisfaction cannot be gained from hard work or materialistic pursuits. By interacting with these senior residents, I realized the secret of gaining real happiness is through helping the others and fulfilling their needs; if the ultimate goal of my life is to make people happy, I’ll become the happiest person in the world. There are tons of ways I can make people happy. As long as I have a sincere heart and as long as I am able to use my talent, I will serve the others well. This is what makes me to consider becoming a physician, who is able to address the physical needs of the others most directly. The pursuit of happiness is my goal, and in order to achieve this I need to first make the others happy and healthy.