Not Built for a Box

I’m not built for a box.

I’m built for becoming.

For shifting, shedding, re-emerging.

For soft pivots and sharp turns.

For not making sense to people who only understand what they can label.

The world wanted me defined.

Packaged.

Predictable.

But I never fit the outline.

Too soft to be hard.

Too logical to be dreamy.

Too bold to be quiet.

Too quiet to be seen.

They wanted consistency.

I gave them depth.

They wanted a version.

I gave them a whole.

And for a while, I tried.

Tried to pick a lane.

Tried to choose one voice.

Tried to shrink my layers into something legible.

But that’s not living.

That’s performing.

So I stopped.

Stopped explaining myself.

Stopped editing my story to match their comfort.

Stopped apologising for taking up space in ways they didn’t expect.

Because the truth is—

I am ever-shifting.

Ever-growing.

Sometimes quiet, sometimes fire.

Sometimes building, sometimes breaking.

Still whole. Still valid. Still me.

I was never built for a box.

And I finally stopped trying to live like I was.

Always,

Zahra