Mine

So many aspects of Herself's life have been set by other people.  So many things Herself has done for others.  Often willingly, occasionally grudgingly; nevertheless, by and for others.  What is there that is truly hers?

College and graduate school were not hers - they were steps along a well-established path, laid out in accordance with the long-standing expectations of those around her.  The wedding to her Beloved belonged, in truth, to Herself's mother, who meticulously planned How Things Should Be.  (Herself cared only that she and her Beloved would be finally married, and minimally about locale, menu, or other accoutrements of the event itself.)  Herself's twenty years of employment?  She belongs to the company and the clients, not vice versa. 

People are not hers.  Her Beloved belongs to himself. He has his own work, activities, interests; committees, meetings; friends, relatives. While Herself is at the center of her Beloved's home, she is on the periphery of the multitude of complex actions and interactions that her Beloved has every day. He is his own man. The Offspring similarly belong to themselves, not to her; she was a mere conduit through which the Universe presented the Offspring to itself.  They are their own people. 

She has always risen to the occasion when asked to take care of things. Performed what has been expected of her.  Done what has needed to be done.  She is both driven and compelled to meet the needs and the desires of others. 

The one exception:  her black belt.

It was not expected of her.  No one required it.  It did not need to be done.  Yet, it was.  It is truly hers, for she has done it for herself alone. 

A unique and inestimably valuable gift to herself.