Dear She,

There have been times when I’ve loved you and times when you’ve made me cry. There have been times when I’ve felt like you let me down and times when I felt I should have done more for you. There have been times when you carried me further than I ever imagined. Times when you’ve demonstrated your beauty, strength, and resilience. Times when you’ve been merely a vessel, and others when you were all I had to rely on. There were times when I should have listened to the signals you were sending me—that I was in trouble; that something bad was about to happen; that someone I trusted was about to hurt me. I am sorry I didn’t listen, but I’m so grateful you were there to be my spine afterward. Thank you.

In the “big picture” of my life, you’re the only truly permanent thing I have now or will have in the future, but I know I haven’t always treated you with the amount of respect that this form of unconditional support deserves. I can’t promise to love you all the time, but I promise to love you as best as I can, as often as I can. There’s a line in a Regina Spektor song that goes, “I’ve got a perfect body // But sometimes I forget // I’ve got a perfect body because my eyelashes catch my sweat.” It’s a cheesy line from a silly song, but to a certain extent I think it rings true. And for that reason, I apologize for the times I’ve forgotten that you’re perfect. Thank you for being patient with me and reminding me, time after time.

Love, Me

Age: 21