The 17th wish list.

Hi, I'm Emelia. A professional dentist now, running my own clinic. My life? Stable. Quiet. Honestly-boring.

But it wasn't always like this.

Back in high school, I was a completely different person. Fun. Loud. Loving. A bit of a brat, sure, but I was happy. Especially around my birthday.

My 17th birthday was supposed to be special-the last big one before adult life. Everyone was dreading it and looking forward to it all at once. But me? I remember it for a very different reason.

That day gave me a decision I never wanted to make. One that flipped my world upside down-and took something I could never get back.

It started with a list.

Every year, I made a birthday list-fun things, dreams, places to travel, silly goals like "Talk to the cute guy in math." But that year, my list was different.

"Understand everything."
"Fix what's broken."
"Feel complete."

But nothing on that list ever came true.

Because that year, my mother left.
Forever.

Since then, I stopped writing.
Stopped celebrating birthdays.
Stopped believing in wishes.

That year took so much from me. And I never figured out why it all happened. It was all so sudden-like life changed in a single breath.

I didn't think much about it again until recently, when I found my old diary. The one where I used to write those birthday lists. Just touching the cover brought back everything I tried to forget.

And I realized-I never truly let go of the past.
Not then.
Not now.

But do people really let go?
Especially when the past holds pieces of who we are?

What happens if we don't let go?
Do we stay stuck? Or do we carry it forward, quietly shaping everything we do?

I'm still trying to figure that out.

Check out the story for more.
Because maybe letting go isn't about forgetting-
Maybe it's about learning to live with what stays.