Someone told me recently that she admired how I live so freely, like there’s nothing holding me back.

I smiled, but I had to be honest with her.

I still work a 9–5.

I’m still mothering, partnering, caregiving.

I still have a thousand tabs open in my brain and a to-do list that stretches into tomorrow.

This life of mine isn’t effortless, it’s intentional.

It’s built in the quiet moments before the house wakes up.

It’s stitched together between school runs and meetings and bedtime stories.

Every part of this is a choice, a hard, sometimes exhausting choice, to keep showing up for a dream I refuse to let go of.

We’ve been taught to shrink.

To settle.

To put everything and everyone else first.

But I don’t believe we were put here just to survive the day.

You’re allowed to want more.

You’re allowed to build it, little by little.

Even when it’s messy. Even when it feels like no one sees the effort.

So if you’re balancing the weight of your job, your home, your heart

if you’re waking up early or staying up late to carve out space for something that matters to you

I see you.

You’re not behind.

You’re not selfish.

You’re brave.

You’re building.

And that counts.

Keep going, gracefully. Boldly. At your pace.

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