To me.
To the past, present and future me.
To the little me: tiny blossom that clumsily and naively is growing her sprouts.
Too shy to shine and too fragile to bloom.
You decided to grow your roots in a very impervious place. The world is not a place for gentle and delicate blossoms. It is a really hard place to live. People will try to eradicate your dreams, to walk on you, they will hurt you and the suffering is endless. But allow yourself to grow. You are already strong because you decide to be alive. The flower that blooms in adversity is the most rare and beautiful one. And it is in the middle of a meadow where I will find you. Surrounded by flowers, with the smile that lights the future days and the power to conquer the world. And I’ll recognize you, because you are me, and you are my flower. But, if I lost you, let’s meet under the hundred-acre wood. Teach me again how to be resilient and I’ll be your protector. I’ll be a wall, not in front of you to hide your fragile body, but behind you, to support you. Always.
I just wish you could see us now. You will be so proud. I wish I could be next to you before, in those nights you were crying, believing the words of the others, trying to shut off your light. You are enough. You are capable. You are worthy. Don’t allow anyone to let fall down tears from your eyes. Don’t let anyone extinguish your smile. Laugh, because your glorious future is coming. Be happy because you are the manifestation of a strong, powerful woman. We are leaving our dream now. You are becoming what you have been wishing to be, and more.
And, to all the people that hurt you, trying to convince you that my words are not true, say thank you. Feel grateful you met them, because it is also because of them, we are here now. They were just embracing the message of becoming that you are more than what they see, and you are capable of showing that you have this potential that I’m empowering right now. I’m sorry it was painful, but this is our revenge. You are my hero. So, please smile, laugh, run, dance, jump. Never stop dreaming, being curious, to learn, to love. Smile, because you are loved, and you are just halfway of our journey and I’ll take care of the rest. Make a wish, and I’ll realize it. Now, enjoy life, you are free.
To the present me. You have the responsibility of that little flower. She grew the seed of your becoming, now it is time to bloom. Unapologetically, bloom. She has been here for you, she suffered, she has the scarf of this world, she had to protect our little flower. Your mission is to let her bloom. No more time for excuses, fear, grief. As she was capable, you are it now. Inside you there is the story of this little flower, now let it become present. Let her story become part of the women’s history. It is when others feel we are weak when we find our power. Your fragility is our secret weapon. It is under this superficial layer or fragility, where all your potential and strength are shining and growing. Don’t be ashamed of it. Instead, celebrate it. Everyday. Be proud of your vulnerability. Be proud to be vulnerable. It means you are a woman. Sisterhood with all the women that made the history: the battles for the women’s rights, liberation, education, female emancipation. You are part of it now: make it worthy, make it real, make it happen. It is thanks to them; you now can cover all jobs positions. Thanks to them you can vote, you have rights. Thanks to them you can have an education, we can speak, we can dream, you are here, we are here. Your clothes, your hair, your habits, your behavior are statements of your freedom. Imagine how it will be when we will be free for real. And now, this is your mission. To be free, for real. Don’t let now anyone stop you. Don’t let others tell you who you are. Because, women, we are everything. We are daughters, sisters, mothers, friends, teachers, superheroes. Your hair doesn’t define your beauty. Your clothes don’t determine your fashion. Your face doesn’t describe your experience. Your body doesn’t show your value. Your job doesn’t express your status. Your habits don’t outline your humanity. Cut your hair, shave, let them grow. Wear a skirt, dress, sweatpants, sweater, heat, nail polish, jewelry, make up, bra or neither of all. Sleep out, stay in, party hard, work harder. Be sober, enjoy transgression. Be a mechanic, doctor, astronaut, artist, dancer, officer, magician, medic.
Have a crush into guys, marry a woman, have family, love yourself, adopt a pet, travel the world, be your home. Be feminine, be masculine, be no one of them or be both: be who you feel you are. Eat: we are not made to fit in a box, to embody an unrealistic model of perfection; we are made to be beautiful, happy and free. Love your body and celebrate it every day. This body comes from the body of your mother, you were living in her how she is living in you right now. We are meant to have the gift of giving life. Love. Those hair made your statement. This eye to show your power. This month to protect your value. These hands to work on your dreams. This chest to protect your love. This belly to be home for the future life. These feet to trace your path. These knees to sustain your fatigue. This blood to connect all of us. Don’t cover it, don’t have shame. The world taught us to hide this gift, just because it was scared of our power. It is life, love, the natural circle of life, it is the symbol of being a woman. Acknowledge and honor it. Love yourself and your imperfection that makes you real. We have the privilege of creation, education, generation. We born and re-born. We are survivors. We are strong enough to live in the grief of the inequality and discrimination. Strong enough to bear the pain of a pregnancy to see after our child grow old and leave us. We are strong enough to love and to let it go, but never forgive. To love and to be loved. To come back home after work and the passion to love. To end a fight and come back to love again. To inspire others and be your own inspiration. Change the world and trust in it. I’m body potential. I trust in the ceremony of becoming.
To the future me. You have a mission, you are resilient, you are not alone. If you arrived here, you could make it further: for the little you, for the present me. And if you lost yourself, close your eyes and listen again to the incredible stories of that superheroine you have been hearing every night before to fall asleep. The story of a woman who grew up by herself. Like that little flower I was speaking in the beginning. Beautiful and vigorous, but because of life she grew thorns to protect herself from loneliness and grief. A woman who moved her roots too early compared with other flowers to find a better place to bloom. A woman who worked in the night and studied in the day to realize her dream. A flower who would never find a good place to live, or too dry of love or too wet or difficulties. A woman who made herself home and decided to grow a little flower next to her. A flower that had never abandoned, a flower that will never stop to love and take care. She taught this little flower to believe in herself, in her dreams and to fight for them. To live in the name of love. To live caring for the mission to change this world in a better place for everyone. For me and her. This woman is my mother, and that little flower is me.
<<You are going to be powerful, mindful and you are going to make me so proud>> she always told me. How does she know? Because, I AM A WOMAN.