The Lion — The No That Sets You Free

One night, under a sky so clear it felt like glass, something inside you shifted.

You stood up straighter.

Your breath sharpened.

Your spirit grew claws.

You became the lion.

And in front of you rose the great dragon Nietzsche described—its scales glittering with a thousand commandments, each one engraved with the same words:

“THOU SHALT.”

Thou shalt be who they expect

Thou shalt not disappoint

Thou shalt follow the path already drawn

The lion in you didn’t roar out of anger.

It roared out of recognition.

You realized that to create your own life, you first had to claim your right to say no.

And so you did.

The dragon didn’t vanish in smoke or flame. It simply lost its power the moment you stopped bowing to it.

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The Child — The Yes That Creates Worlds

After the battle, the desert changed.

Or maybe you did.

The air felt lighter.

The horizon looked wider.

And where the lion once stood, there was now a child—bright‑eyed, curious, unburdened.

Not childish.

But new.

The child didn’t ask what was allowed.

The child asked what was possible.

Play returned

Imagination reopened

Creation replaced rebellion

This was the final metamorphosis:

Not strength, not defiance, but freedom.

The freedom to invent.

To begin again.

To say yes to life without needing permission.