I am writing this letter to share with you all the gifts I have received over the years from each and every one of you.
As many of you might realize today is my birthday. So today I decided to reach out to the most beautiful and influential female souls in my life, (past and present) to show my love, appreciation and praise for being who you are, for your presence in my life, and for gifting me with the love that comes along with our cherished friendship.
I have asked each of you to read this because regardless of our current relationship, there is one thing that will never change; the tremendous impact that each of you have had on my life. This is what I will cherish well into the years ahead.
No matter what life has brought me, good, bad or ugly, the one consistent thing that I have truly been fortunate to have strong women in my life. Each of you has made such a remarkable imprint on me, blessing me with learnings, shared experiences, and most of all hope.
Hope that even on the toughest of days,
someone will be there to encourage me,
love me, and believe in me.
I thank you all for that.
Ladies, I acknowledge you all today because you have given me strength when I have been at my weakest.
You have offered me support when I needed it most.
You believed in me when I wasn’t able to believe in myself.
You have pushed me when I have been too stubborn or afraid to try new things or take a plunge into the unknown.
You created safety for me.
You opened my eyes and my world to new things, travels, foods, and people.
You forced me to let down my guard and have fun.
You showed me how to love, be sensitive, be calm, be patient, be kind.
You trusted me with your deepest, darkest secrets and with your most precious things and people in your own lives.
You’ve given me the pleasure of being a part of your family.
You believed in me and have come to me in your most difficult of times and valued my advice.
You opened my eyes to seeing my best self and the things I can give to others.
Love. Care. Respect. The Power to believe. Memories. And so so much more.
This is what you have blessed me with. You. Just being you.
You have enriched my life by so much just by being you. Plain and simple. So, I also full-heartedly thank you for trusting me to be yourself with and for just being you.
I have also used today as a reminder, for myself and for each of you that we are good enough. Every day we wake exhausted, anxious, distracted, forward thinking, multi-tasking. Rise to tend to our kids and families. Rise to go to work, run errands, ensure that life is running smoothly. Usually if not always putting our needs and our "self-care" aside, at least temporarily. Oftentimes unnoticed or what feels like, minimally appreciated.
Rest assured my tribe, you all inspire me and countless others in so many different ways. I have noticed and now will openly acknowledge that the world is a much better place because of you and your gifts that you have given to your families and your tribes. I also want to remind you that while it might feel like no one takes notice, we are the world to those tiny people who look up to us and are appreciated by those who stand by us.
So... I just wanted to let you know that I love you and appreciate you all. One of the best gifts that I have ever been given is the impact you have had on my life.
Here’s to hoping that each and every one of you
will start your day that same way that I will start mine…
feeling cherished, valued and loved.
Thank you for helping me to get here. Thank you for giving me my wings.
I Love you all… M