A Letter to the Woman who Raised Me
Dear Mom,
You have raised me to be strong as hell
You’ve taught me not to take shit from anyone
And I mean anyone
Including you
Mom
You made me work hard
You told me to believe in myself or nobody else would
Not even you
Mom
I learned that my grades don’t matter
As long as I try my best
But I have to keep them above a 90
For this to be true
Mom
You ask me why I spend the summer as far away as I can
You tell me you miss me
And then I get home and I can’t escape your screams anymore
Mom
You tell me to get out of my room
That my room is like a soundproof bunker
For emergencies only but if I’m spending so much time in here
does that make all the time an emergency
Mom
I can stand up for myself
When other people tell me I’m not good enough
I know because you made me learn
Mom
You tell me that I don’t need to be afraid
Then you scream in my face for not being more careful
Mom
You’ve never hit me
But when my baby brother doesn’t do as he is told, he loses a few hairs to your grip
Mom
I learned that when someone is yelling
It is safer to stay hidden in my shell
And not give them tears
I save those for my pillow
Mom
I love you
You’ve taught me a lot
Mom
Sometimes
I think you’ve taught me a little too much
sincerely,
Your Baby Girl
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