"You truly are the epitome of the American dream. Your family must be so proud."
Maya lets out a nervous laugh. "My family's the reason any of this is possible. My parents worked so hard so my brother and I could have a better life. Medini is really just a testament to everything they've built."
Taylor leans in closer, prompting Maya to elaborate.
Here goes some revised family history.
She mentions that her parents immigrated from India before she was born, leaving behind everyone and everything they knew. She speaks to their pride in ensuring every guest enjoys their stay, their fulfillment in having something that's truly their own. And she throws in the friendships they've made with other local business owners for good measure.
But wait, there's more! Maya imagines saying to the audience. Their retirement gets pushed off year after year, they never take time off, and they haven't seen their families back in India for God knows how long. They've missed out on countless weddings, baby showers, Diwali celebrations... The list goes on. Turns out that all that time taking care of other people's families came at the cost of their own. Isn't that so inspirational?
Maya does a double take when Taylor actually responds with "So inspirational." The audience murmurs in agreement.
"And resilient. So resilient," Taylor adds.
Resilient. There's that familiar word again.
"Who were, and are, your biggest inspirations as a founder?" Taylor asks.
Maya's face starts to hurt from smiling. "My parents, of course. Aside from them, there are so many female founders I admire for their grit and determination, for the way they created something that wasn't there before. Such as Stephanie Fine of Power Bar or Easel's founder, Diana Plank, or the cofounders of Limitless, Liz Anderson and Anita Johnson."
Maya watches Taylor's expression shift ever so slightly. Shit. The final names on that list were not Beth-approved. She should have thought twice before mentioning cofounders who had a falling out.
But Taylor doesn't skip a beat. "Now, with this being our Mother's Day series, we can't forget to mention that you're a new mom!" The screen plays a slideshow of images from Maya's maternity photo shoot. In them, she's wearing a black turtleneck dress and laughing at something off camera, her manicured hand resting delicately on top of her bump. The fifty-year-old German photographer had called her look "Steve Jobs maternity chic." The photographer's assistant even blew a tiny fan so that in every photo, Maya's hair looked like it was caught in a light breeze.
You are a fertile goddess! the photographer had yelled as the camera winked at her again and again. You are powerful! You are an energetic force!
Maya didn't feel like any of those things at the time. Not in the slightest.
"Your son is..." Taylor trails off and Maya chimes in with "Four weeks old."
The audience gives a collective awww and Taylor claps her hands together. "Oh, I remember those early days. So magical, right?"
Maya strains a smile. "Totally. I've been treasuring every moment."
"Well, that's just wonderful."
Maya feels like she's playing a parody of herself when she hears herself say "It really has been so wonderful."
"And isn't your boy just precious?!" Taylor squeals as she gestures behind her to the screen, which now displays a picture of Shaan in a white onesie covered with baby elephants, a matching hat atop his small head. The outfit was a gift from a boutique baby clothing company, alongside a note from the company's founder: Feel free to share your bundle of joy's pictures and tag us. Real subtle.
She makes the rookie mistake of staring at the picture of Shaan for a second too long. The sight of his full, pink cheeks and tiny feet makes her breasts twitch.
No, no, no, she commands her body. Do not fill up with milk.
Panic seizes her. If she leaks milk through her bra and dress, there's no coming back from that. She can already envision the memes and Twitter threads.
She takes a deep breath as Taylor says something else about the Women Who Made It Happen series. When Maya looks back up at the audience, some people are staring directly at her and smiling. Well, not quite at her, but at her glossy, blown-out hair, her bold red lips, her nude pumps. They don't see how little control she has over her body in this moment. In every moment.
