Vachon Imagined

Comparison often arrives disguised as a simple word: should.

It’s taught to us by people, advertisements, institutions, and even our own thoughts.

I should eat this because it’s healthier.
I should do it this way because it will make me better.
I should be further along by now.

The problem isn’t always the action. Sometimes the problem is the comparison hidden inside the word. Should often points to a version of yourself that doesn’t exist yet and measures the one standing here against it.

In that way, should doesn’t always offer choice. It doesn’t always offer independence.

Real independence doesn’t need permission. It doesn’t need approval. It doesn’t worry about who agrees with it or who doesn’t belong in its company. It eats what it wants because it wants to. It rests when it rests. It moves when it moves.

We are given the freedom to do what we want, yet shoulds often get in the way. They pull us into a million little negotiations with ourselves, keeping us reaching for something that isn’t here.

But confidence happens now.

Courage happens now.

Peace, calm, boldness, infinite space—these are not future achievements waiting to be earned. They are experiences available in this moment.

Everything else is a fraction of what you are, a passing thought asking for your attention.

Treat it accordingly.