I deserve to live a joyful, vibrant, passionate life.

Planning permission doesn't build a house. It only removes the objection. Everything after that is bricks, weather, and somebody turning up on the days they would rather not.

Deserving works the same way. Settling the question of whether you are allowed a good life doesn't produce one. What it does is stop you arguing with yourself every single time you try to start.

That argument costs far more than people realise. A great deal goes unbuilt because permission was never granted, so every attempt had to be justified before it could begin.