The Smallness Arrives Without an Announcement
Nobody tells you to stop. That's the part that makes it so hard to name later. There is no argument in which your husband says your ambition embarrasses him, no ultimatum delivered at a dinner table. What happens is quieter and, because of that, harder to resist. The job opportunity comes up and you mention it once. The conversation moves on. You don't bring it up again because the timing isn't right, because his mother is visiting, because you've both been tired. The timing is never quite right. After a while, you stop checking for it.
