This Is For The Women Who Are Elbowing Their Way Into The World

Everyone talks about the greats and how they got to where they did. The athletes, the authors, the entertainers who failed and persevered, who elbowed their way into the damn world — and despite being inspiring, their stories can sometimes feel so far removed from life as it is today. Their stories can seem like fables, or fairytales — perfectly packaged parables that feel unachievable, and far from real.

So, together with SHOWTIME®, we thought we’d bring you a real story inspired by the new series, On Becoming a God in Central Florida, and its forever-hustling main character Krystal Stubbs (Kirsten Dunst). This is the story of someone exactly like you. The story of a girl from Florida, who worked filling out death certificates at a hospital in order to support herself. The story of someone who grew up too quickly. The story of someone who had to give up her version of the American Dream because her SAT scores weren’t high enough. The story of someone who refused to take no for an answer. The story of someone who thought, on so many occasions, that she was finally breaking through into the kind of life she envisioned for herself, only to get knocked down. The story of someone who refused to stay down.

Today, we are bringing you the story of someone who bought a one-way ticket to New York City, and bet on herself even when she didn’t know how her risks would be rewarded. The story of someone who worked waiting tables during the day, and hustling for her dream at night. The story of someone who never let anyone make her feel small, or insignificant, or incapable. The story of someone who persevered — not in a fluffy way, but in a way that was real, and frustrating, and messy all over. This is the story of someone who never gave up, who fought for who she knew she could be, even when the world tried to tell her differently.

This is the story of Shaina.