The Two College Majors

Sophie sat at her desk with two college brochures spread out in front of her. One was for biology, and the other was for graphic design. The deadline to choose a major was Friday, and she still hadn't made up her mind.

Sophie duduk di mejanya dengan dua brosur kuliah terbentang di depannya. Yang satu tentang biologi, yang lain tentang desain grafis. Batas waktu memilih jurusan adalah hari Jumat, dan ia belum juga menentukan pilihan.

She had always liked science. She enjoyed labs, and she was curious about how the human body worked. But she also loved drawing, and she had spent hours designing posters for her school's drama club.

Ia selalu menyukai sains. Ia senang bekerja di laboratorium, dan ia penasaran bagaimana tubuh manusia bekerja. Namun, ia juga suka menggambar, dan ia pernah menghabiskan berjam-jam merancang poster untuk klub drama sekolahnya.

Her friend Dylan came over after school to help her think it through. "What does your gut tell you?" he asked, sitting down across from her.

Temannya, Dylan, datang sepulang sekolah untuk membantunya berpikir. "Kata hatimu bilang apa?" tanyanya sambil duduk di seberang Sophie.

"That's the problem," Sophie said. "My gut doesn't know either."

"Itulah masalahnya," kata Sophie. "Hatiku juga belum tahu."

"Okay, let's do this differently," Dylan said. "If you study biology, what will your life look like in five years?"

"Oke, kita coba cara lain," kata Dylan. "Kalau kamu kuliah biologi, seperti apa hidupmu lima tahun lagi?"

Sophie thought about it. "I'll probably be in a lab somewhere, or maybe studying to become a doctor. It's stable, and it matters."

Sophie memikirkannya. "Mungkin aku akan ada di laboratorium suatu tempat, atau sedang belajar jadi dokter. Itu stabil, dan penting."

"And if you study design?"

"Dan kalau kamu kuliah desain?"

"I'd be doing something creative every day," she said, smiling for the first time that afternoon. "I've wanted that since I was a kid."

"Aku akan mengerjakan sesuatu yang kreatif setiap hari," katanya sambil tersenyum untuk pertama kalinya sore itu. "Aku menginginkan itu sejak kecil."

Dylan leaned back. "You've just answered your own question, you know."

Dylan bersandar. "Kamu baru saja menjawab pertanyaanmu sendiri, lho."

"Have I?" Sophie asked.

"Masa?" tanya Sophie.

"You talked about biology like a plan. You talked about design like a dream," he said. "That's not nothing."

"Kamu bicara tentang biologi seperti sebuah rencana. Kamu bicara tentang desain seperti sebuah mimpi," katanya. "Itu bukan hal sepele."

Sophie was quiet for a moment. She had assumed the safer choice was automatically the better one. But Dylan's question had made her see it differently. Neither major was a mistake; they simply led to different lives.

Sophie terdiam sejenak. Ia selama ini mengira pilihan yang lebih aman otomatis lebih baik. Namun, pertanyaan Dylan membuatnya melihatnya dengan cara lain. Tak ada jurusan yang salah; keduanya hanya mengarah ke kehidupan yang berbeda.

She picked up the graphic design brochure and read it one more time, slower than before. The photos of student projects on the cover reminded her of the posters she had made last spring. People had actually stopped to look at those posters.

Ia mengambil brosur desain grafis dan membacanya sekali lagi, lebih pelan daripada tadi. Foto-foto proyek mahasiswa di sampulnya mengingatkannya pada poster-poster yang ia buat musim semi lalu. Orang-orang benar-benar berhenti untuk melihat poster-poster itu.

That night, Sophie opened the online application and typed her name into the major field: Graphic Design. She read it twice, took a breath, and clicked submit before she could change her mind.

Malam itu, Sophie membuka formulir pendaftaran daring dan mengetik pada kolom jurusan: Desain Grafis. Ia membacanya dua kali, menarik napas, lalu menekan tombol kirim sebelum sempat berubah pikiran.