The safe choice?

She struggled to make a decision. Whatever she decided, someone was going to be disappointed in her. Someone’s opinions of her would change. She could make the safe choice, but would the safe choice make her happy? Was it important that she make the choice that gives her joy, or that makes others feel less threatened?

On the one hand, she could play it safe, go natural. She could make the choice that some would consider respectable, mature. She could fit herself into the box of expectations that strangers and familiars would have her fit. She could appease them, allow them to feel less threatened by her, give them confidence that she won’t rock the boat or embarrass them in front of their peers. 

But on the other hand, she could be true to herself. She could push the boundaries set by people who claim to know better, but actually have no idea who she is or how she chooses to exist. She could make a choice that gives her joy. She could choose to sing from the mountain tops that she is not ashamed of how she presents herself to the world, or of her creative expression of self. 

“Right.” she thought to herself, confidently “I know what I’ll do” 

And without further hesitation, without an ounce of consternation, and with a confidence fueled by a fire of certainty deep within her soul, she made the decision.

“I’ll have the Purple Passion, please” she announced to the bemused nail technician.