The Dream is always the same.

I wake up in a bedroom I don’t recognize, but it’s a dream so I go along with it. That’s the rule of dreams, isn’t it? You don’t question the wallpaper. You don’t question the man in the mirror. You just accept the script and start performing.

I make the bed every morning. Tight corners. Proper folds. I brush my teeth. Mint and routine. I pay my bills. I wash the clothes. I do the dishes. I take out the trash. There is always trash. There is always something to maintain, something to fix, something to keep from falling apart.

I work. I open my laptop. Inbox full. Calendar color-coded. Deadlines stacked like polite threats. I answer emails with confidence. I attach PDFs. I review contracts. I move numbers from one column to another. I call clients. I follow up. I send thank-you notes. I optimize funnels. I test subject lines. I smile on Zoom. I nod in meetings. I say, “Absolutely.” I say, “Let’s circle back.” I say, “We’re excited about this opportunity.”

Everyone seems impressed.

I pay taxes.

I call my family and use the post. I remember birthdays. I show up when expected. I say hi to my neighbors and I help my friends. I clean, and I pay, and I smile, and I wave at anyone who walks by.

At the store, I exchange light politeness. At the shop, banal banter. Weather. Traffic. “How are you?” “Good, busy.” Always busy. Always fine.

No one seems to notice my lines. They are just waiting for their cue.

These are not my friends. This is not my work. These are not my neighbors.

House.Roc Real Estate Entertainment - Where Home is You & The Risks you Take

When I get back home and open the door, the air shifts.

The room is full of people trying to take my place. Same face, same hair, same gestures. Same careful smile. They are auditioning for the same role. Rehearsing the same lines I’ve been speaking all day.

“I’m responsible.”
“I’m dependable.”
“I’m grateful.”
“I don’t need much.”

They deliver it with conviction.

I only have three minutes to prepare for the audition. Three minutes to prove I deserve to remain in a life I never consciously chose. My palms sweat. My heart races. I scan the script as if I might suddenly discover a line that feels like mine.

I beg for the opportunity to be Someone. Anyone. Pick me. I can do it better.

I can sacrifice more. I can want less. I can be easier.

Why am I so afraid of losing a life I never wanted to live? A business I did not invent or a lover I don’t even like…

I didn’t choose these people. These chores and responsibilities are not mine to bear. I didn’t ask for them, and I don’t desire to keep them. Yet I guard them as if they are proof of my worth.

Why am I fighting so hard for a part I do not want to play?

You are Now reading…

I keep wishing I had the courage to say: FUCK IT.

Fuck It brings freedom…

Freedom brings opportunity. Opportunity shapes your future.

But freedom also removes the script. And without the script, who am I?

So I comply. What else can I do? I keep waiting for a better moment, a better chance. A fool proof way out. A safe idea.

A Risk Free Business.

Risk Free…

Risk-free… is the most seductive lie of all.

Like a coward, I go back to rehearsing those lines. I don’t even know who wrote them. My mother? My culture? A former lover?

They sit in my mouth as if they belong there.

The sweat drips down my forehead. My heart keeps pounding. I will believe anyone who can sell me CERTAINTY!

Certainly, they’ll be lying.

But certainty feels like oxygen.

“Proven formula for wealth!”
“Five-step system to find the man of your Dreams!”
“Fool Proof way to get in the best shape EVER!!!”

And I am stuck in this dream.

The dream where I am almost myself. The dream where I am almost free. The dream where I am rewarded for obedience and goodness and productivity.

The dream is always the same.

I wake up, and I keep going along with it…

And Now a Word from our Sponsors :)

Fact: People will spend for love.

Americans spent $66 billion on weddings last year. And, as always, flowers were a non-negotiable part of that spend. This highlights a unique market opportunity for The Bouqs Co. right now.

Famous for cutting the time it takes flowers to travel farm-to-door by 3x, The Bouqs Co. is already one of the country’s largest floral subscription services. But their latest expansion to 70+ brick-and-mortar stores could unlock more high-margin events, like weddings.

They already have 100% YoY growth in counties where stores have opened, with more than $1.2m in revenue per store.

You can join this chapter as they capture more of the $100b global floral market. Become an early shareholder in The Bouqs Co.

Invest in The Bouqs Co.

^{This is a paid advertisement for The Bouq’s Regulation CF offering. Please read the offering circular at https://invest.bouqs.com/}