What happens when a woman finally stops being selfless?
What’s possible when she prioritizes herself?
What if she stops believing what she’s been told by society will make her truly happy?
I’m stopping on this wild and stormy day in December for the first time in my life.
I choose to listen deeply to myself to answer these questions once and for all.
I’m often visited by this vision of a claw machine.
Instead of snatching up toys, the claw is picking up me.
It is forcibly removing me from my previous life—taking me out of the machine—and I’m finally free to explore the world outside of the box.
But, since I’ve always existed inside the box, my body and brain become so completely overwhelmed by the relocation, I must pause. I must reflect and rest before I pick myself up and move forward.
That’s where I am now.
I am scared.
I am excited.
And yet, I’m stronger than I know.