One-hit Wonder

by Lisa Jewell

She was thirty-three but looked about twenty-three and had more energy than a hyperactive, attention-deficit- disordered six-year-old on Red Bull.

‘Oh. You know. It’s easy, isn’t it? So easy just to be – you know – selfish …’ ‘Oh well. There aren’t many of us around who aren’t selfish, mate. It’s the human condition. Self-preservation. You gotta put yourself first – nobody else is going to.’ ‘Yes but – it’s wrong. Just because it’s the human condition, it doesn’t make it right, you know. We should be able to rise above it. Look out for other people.’

‘Listen, mate. You can’t be everywhere at once. You can’t protect people from everything. Believe me. I’ve got three kids. I know. And it doesn’t matter how much you want to control things, people will make their own decisions, ultimately. It’s all about choice. People make choices and other people cannot take responsibility for that.’

Somewhere underneath all that armour, you’re still the same person you were when you were a child, before you’d had a chance to make any mistakes. And you should remember that. Stop letting yourself be weighed down by the things you think you did wrong. Stop being a victim of your own fallibilities. You should. Your whole life will just … just … you know – stagnate if you don’t move on.