Who Do You Want to Be?

Gia came up to me a couple days ago and asked "What do you want to be?".  I wasn't sure where she was going with that question so I asked for some clarification.  She said "You know, like when you grow up, what's your job gonna' be?".  Hmmm, OK.  "I already am a grown up and I do sign language, that's my job".  Her response "No, you don't!".

Oh boy, how could my kids be 4 and 5 1/2 and they haven't a clue about my profession!  How did I  miss that one?  I was beating myself up about it for a few minutes then I realized something.  I am not defined (at all) by my career path.  What I do is not who I am.  I bet most of my friends who I met post-college don't even know what I do.  If I told them at some point, they've probably all forgotten by now. 

If someone were to write a story about you, how much of it would be about what you do for a living?
American's are commonly referred to by their profession.  "Hi...nice to meet you...what do you do?".  Or "that's my friend Dave, the doctor".  It just seems so important to us.  We even include career information in our obituaries!
Now, let me be clear that I do want my girls to know that I have a profession.  That I went to college and got a degree that is worth something, and that I gained knowledge that I use in my work.  I want them to know that they can have any career they want to have.  So, at some point I will talk to them in more detail about my job.  However, for now I'm pretty happy being their Mom.  That's the most important job I'll ever have.