a parable: the girl who was too many

with the insomnia comes a craving for independence, it seems. a need for my own space, my own thoughts, my own quiet consciousness. i feel like too many people have been living in my head for too long, like unwanted guests who wore out their welcome ages ago, but always find an excuse to stay. not that i'm consciously cleaning out anything; maybe purging is a better word. i'm just taking a bit of time to focus, to center myself, to remember that i haven't always been so scattered.

~~***~~

There was once a little girl. She wore her hair in a ponytail, and had little patience for fools. One day she set out to cross a forest with a dagger at her belt. She followed the path and ignored the noises in the woods. She walked past looming bears and threatening snakes, forded rivers and scaled walls. She walked and walked, until one day, she came to a fork in the path. And rather than choose a direction, fearful of choosing the wrong one, she chose both. The little girl became two little girls, and they continued on their way, each in a seperate direction. And every time she was faced with a choice, she split herself again, to cover all possible options.

And, when she finally got to the other side of the forest, the little girl wasn't sure which little girl she was anymore. Was she the first or the fifth? Maybe the twentieth? But it didn't really matter anyway, because no one on the other side of the forest could see her. She had faded with each split, until she was so thin that she had the substance of air.