She couldn’t remember the last time she wasn’t in a rush. Rushing to meet deadlines, rushing to climb the ladder of success, rushing to become the best version of herself. That carefree spirit within her was lost like a wildflower in a garden of roses, no longer able to bloom in the same way, swallowed by the weight of the world around her.

There was a time when she used to live day by day, second by second, savouring life as it came. Meeting with friends, taking spontaneous trips, embracing the beauty of the present. Life was simple, beautiful, and she reveled in it.

But as the years passed, reality set in. The rush of adulthood took over – responsibilities, finances, careers, and the constant pressure to build something lasting. Her life suddenly felt like a chore, a series of tasks on her never-ending to-do-list waiting to be checked off.

Her life was speeding forward, and she could barely keep up with the momentum. She looked at her friends, each one building something— a future, a career, a home— while she was just stuck, trying to move forward but constantly being pulled back, like a ship caught in the relentless pull of the tide, always trying to push forward but never quite reaching the shore.

She could never quite understand what she was doing wrong. She followed all the rules— went to school, graduated, got a job, and started planning her next big step. She followed the timeline as closely as she could. Sure, there were bumps along the way, but she always managed to catch up. Yet, it was never enough. She could feel the weight of the world on her shoulders, always feeling like a failure, like she wasn’t good enough—maybe she was just meant to be average.

Maybe her time would never come.