Learning How to Shine in the Dark
Once, there was a girl filled with splendid dreams.
Her dreams were like round, red balloons filled with the air of many light-hearted motivations. The balloons of her dreams bounced with the unbounded energy of her exuberant thoughts. They filled her head and the air around her, buoyant and joyful.
The girl was not yet a woman, though she felt the precipice close at hand. In the deepest, most sacred spaces of her heart, she wished for all of her dreams to come true.
She wanted to be a successful writer, lawyer, and activist. She even wanted to be an actress, though her intellectual pursuits always came first in her mind.
In her cloud-filled bedroom, she waited for the day when she would go to college. She bided her time. She wrote in her journal. She educated herself with the latest discoveries in history and entertainment. She primped and preened in front of the mirror, practicing for her big day.
