This sapling is as much a portrait of the cycling of life in the NT, the renewal between the dry and the wet season, as it is a portrait of myself. Ash blankets the earth, the sapling stands tall, having survived the heat of the fire. I weathered a fire of a gender biased health system where women’s concerns are minimised. I waited a quarter of a lifetime to receive relief for my pain. I am starting to grow into my new self after a 22 year wait for a diagnosis of a common autoimmune disease.