The Box

She had locked herself away in a box for years. It had become a place of comfort; A place where she hid herself from anything and everything that frightened her. What she didn’t realize however, was that she wasn’t alone in this box. What accompanied her was far more terrifying than anything she had encountered out there in the real world. She became haunted by her own demons; self-doubt, insecurity and fear. Together they wallowed in the darkness. She became numb. She became paralyzed. She couldn’t take it anymore. How could she escape this torture chamber in her mind? She realized there was only one way out. She had to face her fears and all of her demons. She had to embrace who she was at her core.

For as long as she could remember she had placed a title on herself. She had set a limitation in her mind of who she was and what she would become. She never gave herself an opportunity to grow. She had become a prisoner in her own mind but the problem was that she didn’t mind living and feeling that way. Enough was enough. In the midst of tossing and turning in the night, she left her room to get a glass of water. As she returned to her sleeping chamber she passed an old mirror. She hadn’t looked at herself in years. The mirror was blanketed in cobwebs and dust. She could barely see her own reflection. She slowly breathed her warm breath onto the mirror. She rolled her hand into a fist and began to wipe away the filth. It was the first time in years she was able to see her reflection. She looked into the mirror and appeared the same as she always remembered. This time though, something was different. She didn’t see the demons that she saw once before. She didn’t see a little girl who was terrified. She saw a woman who was exhausted. It was a woman who was tired of running away from her fears. She was able to utter out the words, “Not today, not anymore!” She frantically started wiping all the dust and nastiness that remained on the mirror from years of being unused. She had reached her breaking point; she was sick and tired of being the victim.

She looked in the mirror and shouted, “You don’t control me anymore!” “You’re nothing without me. I get to decide how I live my life and I’m not living this way anymore.” She felt a rush of adrenaline come over her body. She hadn’t felt this way in years, since she was a small child. She had a feeling of confidence. It was a small feeling, but it was a glimmer of hope. Hope that things could be different. She didn’t have to be stuck living afraid. For the first time in decades, she had control and she could make a choice. She could choose to be and do whatever she wanted.

She crept back to her sleeping chamber and ripped the closet door open. In front of her were all the clothes she had lacked the confidence to wear. The things she always desperately wanted to wear, but felt insecure that people would stare. She grabbed the long black dress off the hanger and held it to her chest as she looked into the mirror. She swayed while looking herself in the eyes. She knows who she is. She has accepted all her flaws and imperfections. Now is the time to change. It’s time for her to leave her self-confining comfort zone. She’s now ready to emerge from the box.