Slaves to the System: Ticking Boxes like REAL Adults Should

We grow up being told about the endless possibilities for our future; that the world is full of opportunities, wonderful people, and that once we finally become adults, we get to make our own rules. But do we really?

Do we do our children a favour by telling them this softened, shimmering version of the truth? No wonder everyone needs a therapist. I might need one too. But my life has always been dedicated to doing things differently. Whether or not it makes sense: I was born to REBEL.

At its core, the fight is political: a disapproval of wealth being concentrated at the top, a disagreement with corporate structures that treat humans like resources, a deep discontentment with a world that values measurable outcomes more than genuine growth and learning.

But that disdain… it doesn’t always show up in noble, revolutionary ways.

Some days, I fight just for the sake of it.

Some days, I argue because I enjoy the sound of my own voice/convictions.

Some days, I simply wallow because life isn’t unfolding the way I imagined.(Beneath the fiercely independent woman I aspire to be, lives a pampered younger sibling who still expects life to bend a little.)

But then I realise - I’m the only one losing out. Life doesn’t pause while we sort out our contradictions. It doesn’t wait for us to swallow our pride, tidy our feelings, or renegotiate our place in the world. It moves. With or without us!

And in the end, we get only two choices: Join the flow, or stand on the sidelines. (Convincing ourselves we’re above it.) What’s it going to be?

Luckily for me, FOMO is real.

So I get dressed and step out into a world that rarely feels right, constantly reminding myself that that’s just the way it is...

Because the truth is, there’s no perfect moment/person/situation waiting for us.

No grand sign.

No pause button.

There is only now, imperfect and immediate.

Make of it what you will!