I’m 6’5’’, wear size 16 shoes, built like a bull

 That bull’s name is Ferdinand and his flowers are computers and video games and he’d rather sit quietly, sniffing flowers than to do what I “should”

Everybody says “You should play basketball! You should play football! You should be in the NFL or the NBA!”  Call me dumb, antisocial, lazy and more. Tell me sitting there won’t get me anywhere, tell me what I should do, I’ll just bring back more flowers to my spot under the tree

The bull wants to code games without worry of bumblebees, we just need to find the right place in the pasture It’s full of rich soil, bags of seed and awesome flowers. Though they all come at a cost, “Tell us what you need and we will get it” you say. His mother, a cow, understands but doesn’t follow through, the seeds for flowers left in deserts

 But I won’t sit idly by while bees surround me for strange men to take me away to embarrass themselves, believing I’ll do what they think I “should” That bull will move on the more colorful pastures, meet others like himself who’ve taken their flowers and spread them far. He will look at their flowers and take in their advice

 Uproot the weeds at the base of the cork tree and sow seeds for success, nurture them well with ears open to what the older bulls and cows say I “should” do. It will take quite a bit of work but I will persevere, from A.0 to A.9 and B.0 and beyond. Soon my pasture will have flowers of all kinds growing out to other pastures for all bulls to enjoy

A MS in computer science, find what it takes to be a video game programmer and bash through those walls. I’ll learn what makes computers work and how to talk to them I will stay in touch with the bulls I’ve met with flowers as far as the eye can see, do my best to learn life’s lessons in humility and hard work

 They’ll say “You should find another career. The economy isn’t doing well, you need something with security!” but the industry is always hiring and always needs more programmers. And while the other bulls butt heads in stadiums, wander aimlessly through pastures and continue telling others what they should do, I’ll be laying the path of flowers for more gentle bulls to come

So don’t tell me what I should do, push me back to butting heads with other bulls

I’ll never be content with that

 I’ll just sit quietly and sniff the flowers