To the future dads, dudes – and my future husband about our baby girl.

Raise her to be Strong

Raise her to be Strong – not beautiful. See beauty is only skin deep but strength – strength is what carries you on.

Raise her to be strong – not for anyone else but for herself. So that when a boy tries to take advantage of her the first word from her lips is no and her first act is to defend herself.

Raise her to be strong – do not call her honey nor baby girl. Call her what she is – call her a warrior because from the moment she is born she will have to fight for everything she wants in this mans world.

Raise her to be strong – and remind her every day that strong is sexy. That true men [or women] don’t fall in love to watch beauty fade, they fall in love because it is god damn sexy to watch someone who can carry themselves through the good the bad and the ugly.

Raise her to be strong. Set a president for greatness on how she treats the world. How she realizes that muscles are a sign of strength but that there is nothing stronger than a heart that can push on and continue to love in even the darkest of times.

Raise her to be strong – to not listen to what others demand of her mind and her body.

Raise her to be strong so that she will not posses the ability to watch people around her become victims.

Raise her to be strong – and raise her to be an advocate for those who are not because we all know this world could use a lot more love.

Raise her to be strong.

For the love of god raise her to be strong. Because one day I might not be around to help you to hold her up.

My truth

I was raised by a man that thought the world of me. Who loved me unconditionally. My father was the greatest man I have ever known and few have ever risen to what my father was. My truth is that I am scared to raise a daughter in this world. See I always thought I wanted sons because boys seem easy. They have more privilege and I could give them a great life without much doubt. But what I realized is -my fear of bringing a beautiful and strong baby girl into this world is born out of the fear that I can not give her the world. I can’t give her everything because that will be her battle to fight.

The lack of equality in this nation is deafening. Between race, sex and sexual orientation – no one is true ly free to be who they truly want to be and it makes me sick.

The piece above will become a poem one day. But the girl that it is about – the daughter I haven’t yet prepared or thought to have yet. She will be so much more – and I can’t wait to one day meet her.