She thought of the nested dolls on the mantelpiece. Then she remembered the prank someone played on her on her tenth birthday. Her gift consisted of several boxes of decreasing size, placed one inside the other.
She kept peeling the outer layers in search of a miracle inside, but found none.
Would this experiment be as futile as those?
And these arches were the same size, creating an illusion because of the distance between her and them.
Each step would take her ahead of herself, or all that she presumed herself to be for decades.
She may not find a miracle, but find another world.
She did not look forward to finding something at the other end. Instead, she read the silent stories inscribed on the floor. She would step on the same stones where many seekers like her had walked. Each carried a different life experience and a different reason to be here.
Gingerly, she put her right foot forward. And the walls whispered, “Welcome to the windows that live inside us. They whispered about the whirlpools beneath the white marble. And they mentioned the whistling woods beyond us.”
childhood
stepping beyond
-temptations everywhere
on the threshold of addiction
YOLO
Creative Experiments and More 
Excellent take, Reena.
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Thank you so much!
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I remember you asking about my Youtube Channels. Here are the links
Empowered Women
MoneyGoalz
Check if you can open these or I will have to ask for your Whatsapp number.
Here are my other coordinates.
https://linktr.ee/reenasaxena
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Thanks, Reena.
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You’re most welcome
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A beautifully written piece Reena. It takes us on a different journey than that’s visible. Thanks for joining in.
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Thank you so much!
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You’re most welcome
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Interesting Reena..
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Thanks, Geeta!
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powerfully haunting writing Reena 🙌
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Thank you so much, Ange!
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💕
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this is excellent Reena 💜💜 just so so good! 🙌💖
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So many thanks!
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You have written this beautifully.
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Thank you so much!
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A haunting and beautifully layered piece. The imagery of nested dolls and endless arches captures uncertainty, memory, and quiet courage with great subtlety. I love how the journey is inward as much as forward, and how the whispers of the walls suggest worlds beyond certainty. Thought-provoking, atmospheric, and gently powerful—it lingers like a half-remembered dream.
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Half-remembered dreams can bring both peace and trauma. Thank you, Vermaji!
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You’re absolutely right—half-remembered dreams carry a strange power. They can soothe us like a gentle echo or unsettle us with emotions we can’t fully name. That delicate balance between peace and trauma is what makes them so human.
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