My grandma handed me a book with a red steam train on the cover. It was 1998. I was 7 years old.
"The shopkeeper recommended this one for you," she said. "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone."
"Thanks, Nan!" I gave her a hug and waited for the appropriate time to remove myself from the table so I could leap through the portal of those pages. I wanted to tumble down rabbit holes and stumble through mazes and step into wardrobes with lions and witches.
When I was 7 years old, I dreamed of receiving my letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I dreamed of discovering a world full of magic.
Fate, it seems, is not without a sense of irony.
I sat cross-legged on the floor of my primary school classroom, sketching a magnificent dragon inside my exercise book. She was ferocious, with gnarly teeth and fierce eyes, and expansive wings that spread across two pages. She floated there, staring down a courageous man with mighty muscles. He hoisted his sword in the air as his black Friesian horse reared and roared in defiant retaliation.
My teacher pointed to a diagram on the whiteboard. "The hero's journey starts in the ordinary world where everything is normal. Then there is a call to adventure! The hero is booted out of his comfort zone by something he can't ignore. Oftentimes, the hero refuses to undergo the quest he is called to complete — usually out of fear or an unwillingness to exit his comfort zone. But he eventually commits and crosses the threshold into a new world. At this point, there is no turning back.
The hero faces all kinds of obstacles, trials, tribulations, and temptations that test his commitment to the quest. His strength builds as he overcomes each challenge with the help of his supporters and a wise guide — a Gandalf or a Dumbledore figure. He learns valuable lessons that will one day assist him in the final battle.
Eventually, the hero approaches the most dangerous part of the quest: the innermost cave. Everything has led to this! The hero must confront and conquer his greatest fear. Once he does, he emerges on the other side as a transformed person. He claims his prize.
But it's not over yet! More dangers arrive on the road back home. The hero must deal with the consequences of seizing the prize — an angry dragon that comes searching for the treasure that was stolen from his lair. This is the climax of the story where the hero faces his final exam to see if he truly learned all of his lessons.
Once the hero passes the final test, he returns home with his prize. The hero is not the same person he was before starting the journey. He must learn to integrate his newfound knowledge into ordinary life and share his wisdom with others."
My teacher stopped talking. I looked around to see half the class doodling in their notebooks or yawning. The boy sitting in front of me, Rick, was writing the word 'Hero' in blockish graffiti-style letters. I never spoke to Rick — he was the most popular boy in school and I was a quiet wallflower — but I liked his drawings. I told him that fifteen years later when our paths crossed again. He had a finance career on Wall Street, hated it, then gave it all up to start a virtual reality company. Who would've thought we'd end up in Colombia together in 2019, working from Zac's house, drinking coronas on the terrace and playing Beat Saber on his Oculus Quest?
I raised my hand.
"Yes, Nikki," my teacher said. The class turned to look at me. My cheeks flushed bright red. I didn't like people looking at me.
"I was wondering if only men go on the hero's journey? Harry Potter, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, Superman... all the heroes are men. Women are only ever in supporting roles. Can women go on a hero's journey too?"
"Of course," she said.
"So, what stories can I read about female heroines who undergo a transformation like that?"
She paused for a moment. "Umm... I'll get back to you with a list."
I nodded and looked down at the drawing in my exercise book. The heroic man was sitting there on that majestic Friesian horse being everything I was not: strong, courageous, audacious, determined, brave, bold. He'd sacrifice himself for a cause he believed in. He'd confront his fears for the ones he loved. He'd sink that sword into the dragon's chest, even if it meant an almost-certain death for himself. He'd risk failure a thousand times on his quest to save the world.
I could never be like that. I was a shy and softly-spoken young girl. I wasn't strong or athletic or sporty like the popular boys. I wasn't pretty or social or cool like the popular girls. I liked sitting by myself and drawing or reading books in the library at lunchtime. I didn't have many friends at that school. None of the other kids seemed that interested in what I had to say, anyway. I was always a little odd.