Dear future woman she’ll become

Dear future woman she’ll become,

I hope you never feel like you have to be smaller to be loved.
I hope you take up space. Loudly. Proudly. Without apology.

I hope you choose people who see your light and never try to dim it.
And when someone tries to, I hope you walk away with your head held high.
Because you know your worth now. You fought to believe in it.

I hope you cry when you need to.
Speak up when it matters.
Say no without guilt.
Say yes without fear.
And rest without feeling like you have to earn it.

I hope you chase joy. Not perfection.
Not approval.
Not anyone’s version of success but your own.

And I hope when the world gets heavy
You come back to the sound of my voice
Telling you how proud I am
How enough you are
How wildly loved you’ve always been

I don’t know who you’ll grow into
But I know she’ll be brave
And soft
And kind
And powerful

Because I raised you

And you raised me too.