Yesterday, I dropped by the political science department to inquire about the requirements for a minor degree in global politics. I’ve wanted to do this for the longest time but I only came about doing it yesterday. To be honest, I’m not sure why I even bothered doing it.

I’m about 101% sure that my dad won’t allow me to get a minor in global politics. I’m afraid that if I tell him that I want a minor degree in this field of study, he would just frown and tell me that it would be pointless. Then he would badger me about getting a minor in Chinese studies instead (well, this is more my fault than his since I have been telling him for the past 6 months or so that I wanted a minor in Chinese studies).

That’s not even the end of the story. I also badly want to continue taking Philosophy classes in the following years. Although yes, I still have two Philo classes lined up for the next two semesters but I feel that I still want to continue taking Philo until my fifth year. I like Philosophy and I want to continue taking Philo classes.

This, then, leaves me with a big problem. Since I’m technically allowed by my program of study to have one minor (since taking more than one would mean extending my stay in the Ateneo by one more sem or year), I have to make the heartbreaking choice of which minor to take and which subjects to drop. Do I take Chinese studies, philosophy, or global politics?

I think the problem is not that simple as it looks. Politics has always fascinated me to no end as far as I remember. Yesterday, when I saw the subjects required for a minor degree in global politics, I literally felt my heart skip a beat. I would be required to take classes in international relations, comparative politics, and two pol sci electives. Plus, I think taking all of these extra pol sci classes would make me eligible to take the entrance exams for law schools.

On the other hand, I also want to learn how to speak fluently in Chinese mandarin and fookien. I already took classes in mandarin for four years back when I was still in grade school and I don’t recall learning that much. But I guess I was too disinterested to really grasp the language back then. Fookien, I think, is an unofficial requirement for you to do big business here in the Philippines. In all the years that I spent with my dad in his business, the one thing that I learned is that everybody who’s anybody in the business of making big money here knows how to speak Fookien. And I suppose I also find it annoying when my cousins speak in Fookien and we’re the only ones who can’t understand what they’re talking about. This is why I want to learn how to speak in Chinese. Getting a minor degree in chinese studies would help me learn how to speak the language.

So what then do I choose? Global politics, Chinese studies, or Philosophy?

I think that of the three, philosophy would be the easiest to remove. This is because in my five year stay in Ateneo, I would already be taking up four Philosophy classes even if I don’t take a minor degree in Philo. Taking four additional classes in Philo would be a little too much for my mind, I think. I’ve already encountered a lot of “Fuuuuu!” moments in Philo last year and I think I would encounter a lot more of those moments next year when I take up Philosophy of religion. Although I’m going to miss those “Fuuuu!” and “Ahhhhh!” moments, I think my life would generally be simpler without them.

Taking out Philo means I’m left with Chinese studies and Global politics. This is where it gets tricky.

I think it’s no secret that my favorite-est subject of all time is politics. I love politics. I love to analyze issues, I love to debate about state ideas, I love learning more about public discourse, I admire people in politics, and I’m happy when I’m studying politics. Given the chance and approval of my father, I would take a minor degree in global politics in a heartbeat.

However, I do realize how practical it is to study Chinese. With China becoming more and more powerful, I wouldn’t be surprised if China replaces the US as the world’s only superpower sometime in the near future. What’s more, China is a hotbed for scientific research. And there’s a big possibility that I might apply for a job in China in the future. Knowing how to speak fluently in Mandarin and Fookien would immensely help me land a job there. So I guess it would be highly practical for me to learn how to speak in Chinese.

All in all, I’m basically being made to choose between something I love and something that’s practical.

I guess I have the whole summer to think about this.