I have never been outside. I’ve seen it. I know the sky is mainly blue, except for when it is pink, or gray, or yellowy orange, or glowing red from flames, or even black with the night. I know rain sometimes falls from the sky, I have never felt it on my skin, but I have heard it fall agressively on roof and delictaley against the windows. I know that clouds change shapes and sizes and move with the wind, which I have heard and seen as it dances amongst the leaves in near by trees, but I have never felt the wind tangle my hair or stood in the temporary shade of a cloud on a sunny day.

I am not in prison, there are no prisons in the Realm of Existence. You may want to argue that if one is forced to stay inside all day, than isn’t ‘home’ just another word for ‘prison?’ You would be wrong. We don’t stay inside by force, we stay inside by choice. We stay inside, because Inside we are right.

Inside, we are good.

Inside, we are safe.

…

Dearest 261712808,

Tomorrow, you turn 13! How Exciting!

Tomorrow, as is the tradition in the Realm of Existence you will participate in “The DBTPFDR Procedure.”

Tomorrow, for the first time in your life, an Outsider will appear at your door…an Outsider from the Realm of Expectations!

and

Tomorrow, You will invite the Outsider in!

“The DBTPFDR Procedure” will begin promptly at 7pm and end at midnight.

…

Dearest 261712808,

Yesterday, you turned 13. How Exciting!

Yesterday, you experienced one of the Realm of Existence’s most important experiences: “The DBTPFDR Procedure.”

Yesterday, for the first time in your young life, an Outsider appeared at your door… a Mr. Outsider from the Realm of Expectations!

and

Yesterday, you invited Mr. Outsider in!

Today, you will complete the “Reflective” AND the “Decision” portions of “The DBTPRDR Procedure”

First, type your response to Q1 below . Second, select your decision for Q2. Lastly, submit your repsonses.

Q1: Describe your date with Mr. Outsider from the Realm of Expectations. Make sure to include specific facts about the procedure [date], as well as your feelings about the procedure [date]. Refrain from discussing any events or feelings experienced during the hours prior to the procedure. Be thorough. Be concise.

A1. Mr. Outsider arrived exactly at 7pm. I thought that was very polite of him, to be punctutal. I always appreciate when my delivieres arrive when promised, and I felt the same satification about Mr. Outsider’s prompt arrival. He came in and we sat together on the sofa. We struggled to find things to talk about at first. But the silence with Mr. Outsider felt a lot like my own silence. It intriqued me and over the course of the evening the spots of silence became less intriquing and instead became more satitsfyingly comfortable.

We did find things to talk about. We both LOVE music, like obsessingly Love music. We shared taste in a few artists, but mostly we liked very different styles of music. His Realm of Expectations was home to a greater variety of music than my Realm of Existence. Some of his music I liked, some of it I loved, and the songs that I didn’t really like, I ended up liking once I saw the look on his face as he either listened, sang along, or air drummed to the song filling the room in the space around us and the space growing smaller in betwen us.

We ordered a pizza. He let me pick the toppings. It arrived as promised, when promised. He didn’t pick anything off of the pizza and it brought me joy to know he liked a taste that I like. He saw me smile and asked me “What?” with a smirk on his face and a bigger smie in his voice; I told him exactly what I was thinking. He told me where he was from, in his part of the Realm of Expectations, you were grateful for what you got and you were gracious to your host. He grabbed another slice. Together we ate the entire pizza. We were full and happy.

We talked about and listened to more music. We even danced. When I asked him to dance he let out a small audible gasp. When I asked “What?” he explained that in his Realm of Expectations women did not ask men to dance. I told him, that in my Realm of Experience things like that didn’t exist or matter—- and we danced. We danced until 11:59 pm.

At 11:59 he asked to take my hands. I said “Yes?” He asked if he could put my hands, my arms, around him and I said “Yes?” He asked if I would squeeze him and if he could embrace and squeeze me in return, I said “Yes?” He asked, “Is this ok?” and I answered “Yes.”

We stopped embracing and he saw me and he knew that for me, that was enough. It was more enough. It was great. It was at first intriguing and then satisfyingly comfortable. He wished me “Sweet dreams.” I wished him the same. I closed my door and smiled, then cried, becuase Mr. Outsider from the Realm of Expectations was perfect AND he was gone.

Q2: Would you like to give up your space inside, your views, some of your choices, your rightness, your goodness, and your saftey in order to travel into the Realm of Expectations? If you say yes, you wil never be able to fully come back to your Realm of Existence. You will live among others in the Realm of Expectations, which is different from your only known Realm of Existence.

A: Yes, I understand and I want to go. B. Yes, I understand and I want to stay.

…

Dear 261712808,

In response to your DBTPFDR Procedure form you will be granted access to the Realm of Expectations. It is important that you know one important detail before your journey, Mr. Outsider works for the DBTPFDR Department of Very Rare Experiences and is a highly valuable member of our team and as such you will need to find your own “Mr. Outisder” out in the Realm of Expectations. We are not responsible for any disappointments. Enjoy your trip.