Two friends started working at the same company after university. Ten years later, one had bought a house, driven a new SUV, and sent her children to an expensive private school. The other had a modest car, rented an apartment, and was still saving towards her first property. For years, she had been proud of how far she had come. Then she attended her friend’s housewarming party. Everybody praised the house. People took pictures beside the SUV. Someone joked that the owner had figured life out. On her way home, she looked at her own car and suddenly felt ashamed. She forgot that she had paid off her parents’ debts, built an emergency fund, and supported her younger siblings through school. Nothing about her life had changed that evening. But for the first time in years, she felt as though she had fallen behind.