When I was a teenager, I grew up in a suburb outside Stockholm. Everyone’s parents seemed to live the same life. I often saw them on the commuter train, looking as though they were on their way to (not from) their own funeral. They all worked in offices in the city, sat there all day, then commuted back only to fall asleep on the sofa in front of the tv. This is how it appeared through a teenager’s gaze, with a limited understanding of the world.

For myself, I imagined the following destiny: a few years of studying, a job in finance or whatever adults worked with, then finding someone to marry, buying a house in the suburb, taking on a mortgage, having children, and being stuck forever.

So the only thing I wanted from life was to be surprised. Anything, as long as it was not that.

And oh, how that wish came true. On the one hand: be careful what you wish for. On the other: I did ask for it, and I remind myself of that regularly.