Barren | ✓

s i l v e r

cassandra lived life on unusual principles.

everyone around her couldn't understand where she founded such firm principles from, but there was inspiration for everyone to take away.

cassandra was the first and only child to a traditional christian family. she was loved, celebrated and cherished for she was believed to be the golden footing to her parents fortune.

she was the sole inheritor of two wealthy families and everyone had plans for her. she was expected to be highly educated, self sufficient to take over the family empire and make it reach new heights.

she was prepared to take on the world by 19.

one night, she had a dream.

in the dream, she saw herself in the mirror. in the mirror, she could see herself surrounded by misery. she was clad with the best jewels and clothes, but around her was nothing but ruins.

people with tattered clothes and severed limbs crawled to her, asking her, begging her, crying out to her for help.

she was mortified.

she tried to run but she was paralyzed.

the more she tried to drown out the voices, the more they seemed to claw into her head. she tried to scream for help but her voice was rendered mute.

the hands clawed at her, now clutching at her chanel suit. she shrieked with fright and pulled apart the pearls around her neck and threw it as far apart as she could.

some of the claws lessened.

as though on cue, she started tossing away all the riches she had access to.

the burden reduced significantly.

the more things she threw, the more the weight lessened. after the certain time, the voices stopped.

as though on dare, she finally opened her eyes.

the lands of ruin had turned into a sufficient civilization. The same people in ruins and tatters were now richly clad, happy looking and able.

there were pastures and houses around the place while in the distant corner she could be the smoke from what she could assume was civilization.

the pastures all around now nurtured the choicest fruits, vegetables and animals while the industries far, far away found their share of gold, aluminium and every precious.

the land had boomed from ruins to riches.

she look at herself and realized that she'd stripped herself of everything and had become a simpleton, looking alike one of the crowds.

but it didn't horrify her.

to her surprise, it immensely gratified her that she was capable of bringing such fortunes to the destitute.

she seemed not to be the golden child of her parents alone.

she was made for much more.

when she finally slipped out of her dream, it was as if she'd been introduced to her destiny for the first time.

there was an insurmountable hope that swam in her heart, her soul more alive than it had ever been at the thought of the power and resources she had to make it happen.

when she announced her intention to her parents, the first thing they did was book her an appointment with a therapist.

her friends had similar reactions.

nobody could understand why she wanted to throw away the life of undivided riches and go mingle with the poor and empower them.

but cassandra was determined, the same determination that her forefathers used to create the empire they had.