If you've ever looked at your life and thought, This wasn't how it was supposed to turn out, you're not alone. In fact, that moment-the one where the illusion cracks-is more universal than we like to admit. There's something strangely comforting about thinking the world is yours, like you're entitled to joy on command, applause without effort, love without complication, answers without asking the right questions. And when reality inevitably shatters that idea, it can feel like betrayal. Like the universe promised something and then laughed as it snatched it away.

But what if that promise was never real to begin with?

Somewhere along the line, someone handed us a map that led nowhere. The routes were marked out clearly-go to school, follow the rules, work hard, smile politely, stay on track. And at the end? Fulfillment, happiness, success-whatever that means. You were told that life would reward you if you just did what you were supposed to. The world was yours, they said. Take it. But what they didn't tell you was that the rules keep changing. The finish line keeps moving. And the game? It's rigged in ways you can't even see until you've already lost a few rounds.