But as I reached for my door handle, I realized something: maybe breaking some of those rules wasn’t failure. Maybe it was finally, truly…

Forging my own path…

The morning sun caught the crystal paperweight on my desk, scattering rainbows across the wall. A gift from my grandfather, who once told my mother, “Why live as a model of what others want, when life is so short.” I remember hearing him say it when I was little, looking up at the two of them, his words sinking in even then. Maybe it was finally time to prove him right.

With one final breath, I opened my door to face the day ahead.