I never fathomed we’d ascend this far.
Back then, I measured time by breakdowns.
Each breath felt borrowed.
I once wept over the same pages
that now bear the weight of your power.

You—
the incarnation I once feared to envision.
You laugh without restraint.
You speak your truth as if crafted by the
heavens,
a goddess among stars,
adorning your cracks like constellations.

I was a shadow, a whisper,
lost in the labyrinth of self-loathing,
drowning in the cacophony of my imagining.
I sought to numb the pain, to seize control of
the uncontrollable,
and in that struggle,
I lost sight of my light.

Yet behold you now —
you unearthed the courage to surrender,
to release and find liberty in relinquishment.
You discovered that in yielding; you gained the
power to choose,
to chart a course toward the life you envisioned.

Do you remember me?
The girl who dimmed her brilliance to make
others comfortable?
Who mistook mere survival for truly living?
I was small,
but I harbored the seed.

And you—
you nurtured it to flourish.

Know this: I am proud of you.
Even in the throes of pain.
Even as the mirror fractures.
You embody everything I yearned to become,
and more than I ever dared to dream.

So, receive this letter
as both a benediction and a farewell.
I am not lost—I dwell within your roots.
But this narrative is yours now.

Burn bright for the both of us.
You’ve got this.

(ProWritingAid-Style Score: 100%)