Member-only story
I’m the youngest of four siblings. Going last has its advantages. Others have shown the way. But that didn’t help me. Somehow, I just couldn’t do the things other people could do.
As a young person, I couldn’t swim. I couldn’t drive a car. In school, I started out pretty good with languages, taking Latin. But I got sick and missed a few weeks and since then couldn’t learn another language. I was never stupid. But I was unsure and intimidated.
I was an introvert. Eventually, I began doing community theatre and I was unafraid to act before an audience because I was always prepared. But in groups of theatre friends, for many years I was quiet, standing in the back. Mostly observing.
I lived in a world where a path (of sorts) was set up for me. There were expectations to meet. My fate would be to go to college, get a job, marry, have 1.5 children, work until I retire and then die. But I wasn’t sure I had it in me to do those things.
I didn’t even like to drink beer. I was an odd duck who didn’t quite fit in anywhere.
Somewhere along the way I got the idea that I wanted to do the impossible. Not just the things expected of me (those were boring anyway), but things nobody expected from me.
