Untamed

Imagine a young girl sitting quietly in a small room, surrounded by other children, in a church classroom. She's eager to understand the world, curious about how she came to be, but the story she's told is one that confines her to a narrow role. She learns that she must be good, quiet, and compliant. At around ten years old, this girl begins to internalize societal expectations that shape her identity and cage her true self. This is the age when children learn to hide who they are to become what the world expects. The wildness within, that spark of authentic self, is dimmed by shame and the pressure to conform.

In this classroom, the story of Adam and Eve is told not as a tale of human complexity, but as a cautionary lesson: desiring more than allowed is sinful. This lesson teaches the girl to suppress her curiosity, her hunger for life, and her imagination. She learns that feelings like anger, hunger, and longing are dangerous and must be hidden. Over time, this conditioning builds invisible cages around her emotions, body, and desires.

Yet, beneath these cages, the wild self remains alive, much like a caged cheetah who remembers the open savannas and the freedom to run. This wildness is not erased by captivity; it simmers beneath the surface, restless and powerful. The ache she feels—the constant discomfort and longing—is a sign of this wildness struggling to break free. This ache is both a protector and a tormentor, reminding her that life is impermanent and that she must stay prepared by holding back her true self.

As she grows, she learns to silence this ache through various means—sometimes through food, sometimes through numbing substances like alcohol. These coping mechanisms serve as ways to maintain the facade of being 'fine' while the inner self is half dead, trapped in a cage of societal expectations. Her journey begins when she recognizes that this cage was never meant to hold her and that the wildness within is her true nature.

This realization is the first step toward freedom. It is a call to remember the self before the world told her who to be. It is an invitation to begin unlocking the cages, to feel the ache fully, and to honor the wildness that has never left.

As we move forward, we will explore the keys that unlock these cages and the path toward living untamed.