8.

Humans start out as sand; painfully common grains of sand, just drifting around where the wind pushes them, until they get tired of being bossed around.

That's when they decide to change themselves, to become a better, improved version of themselves.

They put in a lot of effort, and put themselves under intense pressure to change, not unlike sand being heated in fire and put under pressure, till it becomes glass.

Shiny, beautiful, but fragile glass.

The change had taken every bit of their energy and willpower, and it has paid off, because now, they're a much better version of themselves.

But, one little mishap, no matter how minor, and the glass falls down.

It breaks into tiny little pieces which cannot be repaired back to its original form; little pieces which harm everything and everyone that comes in their way.

One person, knowingly or unknowingly mistreating them. . . that's all it takes, really. One wrong move, and they break into an irrecoverable form, and lash out at everyone who come their way.

The former glass pieces are so weak at this point, that they automatically become weaker, and feebler, until, eventually, they're nothing but grains of sand once again.

Back to square one.

And that was exactly what happened to me; over and over again.

x x x