"Loosen them." She lifted her hands so they could see the bindings that were wrapped tightly. Her skin was raw and bleeding beneath the rope. It took everything she had to remain calm and still as the man approached to loosen them. His hands shook and it caused her to wince in pain. Once he was finished she smiled.

He turned his back on her almost immediately and she started to dig her nails into the rope. Her goal was to free herself even if it meant loosening it slowly with her nails. It took a lot of time and patience to dig through the heavy ropes that bound her but she was relieved when at last they fell away. Glancing down the sight caused her to stare.

The ropes were bloody and she kicked them away. But her wrists, the skin torn and bruised. She could hardly believe it was her wrists she was looking at. Her own actions that had caused the binding and with it she had to cut herself away. She'd take bits of the skin and tug at them. The ragged edges that felt all too much like her mind. Frayed and damaged.

The ties that bound her would not always be physical like the rope. It won't always be as damaging to the skin, but it will always be there. The scars would heal but the mind would remember. Was it slavery or was it freedom?

It was snowing heavily, the temperature extremely cold, while most were inside, Snowball kept on rolling, like he always did. 

He had to keep on rolling, his window of opportunity was there, and perhaps closed tomorrow. Down the hill he went, faster than ever to collect as much snow as he could. Unfortunately he bumped into almost every obstacle on the way and kept losing more snow than he collected.

He shrunk, and no matter his efforts, nothing seemed to work. His obsession of becoming the largest snowball out there had hindered his goal. If he had been calm, and looking around before rolling and accepting that things take time, he might have been able to grow at a steady pace. Hunger for freedom or in some cases happiness can blind us, hurt us, and in the end scar us. Everything in moderation, in this journey that we call life, stopping up and looking around can show us an alternate path, perhaps even in the right direction?