My Mechanical Romance

by Alexene Farol Follmuth

“The world is not very helpful to a smart girl,” says Ms. Voss. “More often it will try to force you inside a box. But I urge you not to listen.”

There’s a lot more kinds of strength than just being outwardly tough, and it’s a lot to ask of anyone to succeed when most people in the room are waiting to see you fail.

I think about how much I want them to succeed in life; to go far, as far as possible, until every girl who succeeds is like a beacon of light for all the others.