Yes, really
Until the age of 12, and without my knowing it, I was being groomed as the future bride of a future British pop star. "Future" is the operative word here, because my intended future never arrived. It was canceled for several reasons, mostly because I opted out, beginning at age 8 -- and later at 12 when they flew me to England and I witnessed reality at Edith Grove. Child trafficking by any other name. At age 8 I began to ditch the plan after reading The Little Mermaid which plunged me into an emotional crisis. The "fate" of the little mermaid was a grim, conscious choice to abandon her Prince after a series of traumatic shocks made it clear to her that she wasn't cut out for life as a Princess. Her fairytale lover is too self absorbed and busy being a Prince to see her for who she is, while in various ways she is crippled by her deal with the witch. Her tongue gets cut out and the legs she acquires make walking on land unbearably painful. Besides, she...