My sweet girl,
You are innocence. Imagination. Authenticity. You are my best self. Pure. Unedited.
I watch you in an ordinary moment – you are sorting buttons, utterly absorbed in their textures and colors as you count them and rearrange them. Your wispy hair reflects golden sunshine streaming from the window behind you. Your eyes are focused and intent. You are absolutely beautiful, so much so that I could cry.
I can’t imagine anything you could ever do that would cause me to ever love you less than I do now. You have my heart always. I believe in you. I’m excited to see who you are at 5, at 20, at ages I haven’t even reached yet; as a student, as a wife, as a mother; as you grow and find your voice, trust in yourself, overcome obstacles, and cultivate hopefulness in yourself and those around you.
You are vulnerable to the future, as we all are, to all those you haven’t yet met, to all the stories you haven’t yet heard that will shape you, to the places yet unseen. I hold that vulnerability as a well within myself for you, since you do not yet know it’s there . And there will be joy, immeasurable I hope. I wish I could hold you in this moment forever, yet it is already gone.
I hope we are teaching you compassion, a sense of connection to others, courage. I hope you feel that you belong, that you are surrounded by love.
Love, Mommy
In the eyes of a mother, there ne’r be a doubt
About son or daughter birthed
Always un-conditional
I love thee
My son!
As my blood warms the veins that run through my body
I know they run through yours too
You-not only a part of me
But the best of me
I gaze upon you as a man
And my heart-smiles
I loved your Letter to my daughter, it warmed my heart and reminded me once again, how wonderful it is to notice our children as “simply perfect”
Thank you for such lovely words, Beth. I, too, think she is getting the best parts of me and I’m so glad. Your words are beautiful.
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Lovely. Thanks for sharing this honest moment. Bringing a child into the world opens a future of mystery, apprehension, and wonder. Your words ring true, even when your child is an adult … I say this as a mother of both a six year old, and of an 18 year old, and two in between. I miss the little boy I once had who is now a young man, but he is still lurking within the oh-so-confident guise of a man-boy.
Love these moments with your daughter now, and later!!!
I love this letter to your daughter for it shows your own vulnerability. Someone once said that me in a restaurant – that having a child makes one so incredibly vulnerable and as I heard it and understood what he meant, I realized how true it was. Our children grow us as humans every day.