Branches Book

BRANCHES

Our lions wrestle– “You can’t keep treating me like this.” “Then leave.” And with each roar we begin to hate ourselves and praise the other. VI No one explains how life is going to play out. The fairy tales that were read to me as a child always listed the same steps. 1. Find your conflict 2. Find your prince, man, future husband 3. Let your prince, man, future husband save you from something 4. Marry him 5. Live happily ever after But what happens when you find your prince, this man, your future husband And he saves you, God does he save you, He saves you from everything that you’re afraid of and All of the things you didn’t know could scare you And then he leaves. There is no happily ever after. These fables are lies that are told to engage a young girl To set up her hopes for the future. No one prepares you for the moment when you give him all you have And he gives you thirty percent. Thirty percent of who he is. No one prepares you for the moment when you have to pick between Your livelihood and your family. And you feel guilty either path you take. No one prepares you for the moment when your life takes Unexpected paths. Unexpected paths that make you Want to jump from your third story apartment. Unexpected paths that make you Want to lie in bed and not get up for a decade. Unexpected paths that make you Wish you could start again from the beginning. ___________________________________________ To set her up to fail.

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