To my future daughter,

I don't even know you yet.

In fact, I haven't even met your father yet.

It's strange how much love I have for you when I haven't even held you in my arms yet.

I often wonder how it would feel to hold you for the first time.

I imagine looking into your eyes for the first time, your tiny fingers wrapped around my pinky, and realizing I'm holding my whole universe in my hands.

I often reflect on the kind of mother I want to be for you. During these reflections I realized that my biggest responsibility towards you comes before I even conceive you: choosing your dad.

The kind of partner I choose will determine the atmosphere you grow up in, your confidence, and even your own perception of love.

I want the best for you and wanting the best for you has made me want the best for myself.

I've stopped settling for less, waiting around, and making excuses for incompetent men.

Even if this means I'll have to wait longer to meet you, I'm willing to wait.

Because you deserve to grow up in a house where love is the loudest emotion in the room.

As much as I am excited to match outfits with you and paint our nails together, I'm even more excited to watch you be insanely passionate and confident.

Of course I'll teach you how to do your makeup.

Of course I'll teach you how to make brownies.

But most importantly, I want to teach you how to be unapologetically you.

But how can I teach you that if I don't practice it?

Mommy has always been told that I'm a “good girl”: quiet,shy, and unproblematic.

But baby I'm going to teach you that whoever you are, you will always be good to me.

Loud? Good!

Bold? Good!

Smart? Good!

I promise to never trap you in a box of my expectations.

In fact, I know I'll never be a perfect mom.

But I want to be a loving mom.

So do me a favor and tell me when I'm lacking.

Tell me where I can be better.

I promise to hear you out and not be defensive.

I don't want to be “a good mom” I want to be a good mom to you.

I cannot wait to meet you, love you, cherish you.

I wonder if you'll have my laugh or your dad's laugh.

Either way, I'm sure it will become my favorite sound.

Right now, you're just a name in my notes app.

But one day I'm going to see your face, a melding of the very best of both your mom and dad.

You're worth the wait.

Thank you for helping me dream bigger.

Hello my lovely people,

This article is for anyone who's ever dreamed about the family they hope to build one day.

Whether motherhood is years away, something you're praying for, or not something you've thought about much yet, I hope this reminds you that some of our biggest acts of love happen long before the people we love even arrive.

If you relate to this article and want to read more of what I write all you have to do is click on subscribe

Subscribe now

Welcome to the family,

With love,

The Youngest Daughter

What is it like listening to songs in the shower and not having to imagine romantic scenarios because you already lived one that day?

What is it like going to sleep and not hugging your pillow because you already have someone to hug?

What is it like not having to guess what your partner might look like because you've already memorized every mole, freckle, and smile line?

What is it like setting thetable for two without wandering who would fill the empty seat?

What is it like walking in a crowded mall and not getting overwhelmed because someone is holding your hand?

I imagine, I imagine, and I imagine.

And somewhere in the future, there is a man whose laugh I haven't heard, whose voice I don't recognize, whose name I don't know—

yet somehow,

I will love him enough to call him home.

Hello my lovely people,

This one is for the yearners.

For the people who accidentally imagine a future while washing dishes, hear love songs as if they're memories, or leave an empty space in their day for someone they've never met.

It's fascinating how the ordinary moments of life make us long for extraordinary love.

My hope is that this piece reminds you that yearning isn't something to be ashamed of.

If you relate to this article and want to read more of what I write all you have to do is click on subscribe

Subscribe now

I'd also love to know:

When do you find yourself yearning for love?

Or, if you've already found it,

When do you feel most loved?

I can't wait to read your answers.

Leave a comment

Welcome to the family,

With love,

The Youngest Daughter

I’ve seen so many people call the brief love encounter Joey and Rachel had “cringe and unnecessary”. But in my eyes it was the start and unfolding of true love.

The people that actually find this couple cute are the same people who want a love that’s peaceful and easy.

The kind of love that loves the real and raw you.

In the way Joey realized he found Rachel beautiful in the morning with no makeup on. No performance, no convincing, just a man who couldn’t believe he woke up in the same house as her.

The kind of love that transforms from friendship.

Because before you ever saw them as a romantic partner, you saw them as a person.

And i genuinely believe that getting to know someone as a person first and later falling in love with them is the best way to fall in love.

I believe that Joey knows Rachel so much that he would know how much Paris means to her. He wouldn’t dare to stop her because he saw her passion for work before he ever saw her as a just a partner.

Ross loved the idea of Rachel.

Joey loved Rachel.

Let’s also not forget how Joey stayed up all night writing a list of things he doesn’t like about Rachel.

He could only come up with “she made me switch to light mayo”.

Ross on the other hand had some pretty nasty things to say: kind of ditzy, too into her looks, spoiled and just a waitress.

What makes this even worse for me is that Joey wrote that list to help him get over Rachel so he doesn’t hurt Ross.

But what was Ross’s reason?

To help him pick between Rachel and another woman.

“Too into her looks” or is she just confident?

“Spoiled” or are you afraid you can’t meet her standards?

“Just a waitress” or are you just a jerk for saying that about a woman who’s trying to stand on her own two feet?

Let me also remind you that Joey and Rachel lived together!

So he would’ve known her better and seen every side of her.

Yet he couldn’t come up with a single flaw.

And who stood with her when she was pregnant? Joey did.

He fell in love with her while she was pregnant with Ross’s child , giving her and Emma a home when they had nowhere else to go.

Pregnancy is rarely portrayed as the romantic ideal on television.

But Joey loved her through it, not in spite of it.

This is proof that he loved her soul, not her body.

Joey shows us what healthy love should look like.

But I guess that kind of love isn't very successful on television.

Maybe because it doesn't involve chasing, breaking up, getting jealous or grand romantic gestures.

It's love purely founded in friendship and perhaps it wasn't “dramatic” enough.

But I will always choose Joey.

Not because he was the perfect boyfriend.

But because he is a lover of the soul.

And also because friends to lovers might be the best trope to ever exist.

Hello my lovely people,

This week's article is a little different.

It's less about Joey and Rachel, and more about the kind of love I hope all of us experience one day.

I've always believed that the healthiest relationships don't begin with obsession—they begin with friendship. They begin with seeing someone as a person before seeing them as someone to pursue.

That's why this storyline has always stayed with me.

Whether or not you agree that Joey deserved Rachel, I hope this article makes you stop and ask yourself one question:

Does the kind of love I'm chasing actually feel peaceful?

I'd genuinely love to know which side you're on, so leave a comment and let's debate it (kindly, of course).

I'm the youngest daughter, and I write about love, faith, friendship, and growing up with a heart that feels everything deeply.

If this piece resonated with you, I'd love for you to subscribe and join our little corner of the internet.

Subscribe now

Welcome to the family.

With love,

The Youngest Daughter

In an era of girl’s girl's and women empowerment, I think some women never got the invitation.

For the longest time, girl's have been taught to please men and center our lives around them. Most girl's refuse to live this way anymore and reject the patriarchy.

We grow up hearing things like “don't do too much makeup, men don't like fake girls”. Statements as such boil our blood and we go ahead and do the boldest makeup look.

My favorite genre of women is women who fight back.

But somewhere along the lines I realized some women were also fighting us.

And for what reason?

Men.

It's always a man.

The first betrayal

My first betrayal from a woman came from my best friend of 5 years (now ex best friend). She knew how crazy I was over this one boy from church and I knew she had a crush on a guy from school.

One fine day at church, this boundary-blind woman is touching on my crush and directly staring into my soul. I had restraint and maintained my composure because we were at church.

She stopped replying to my texts.

She started ignoring me as if I was the one who flirted with her crush.

I'm utterly confused because what makes my best friend go flirt with my crush right infront of me?

How did my ride or die become the villain in my story?

A few months pass and on her birthday she asks me if “everything is okay between us”. This is the part where I want to spam the entire article with clown emojis.

I have never been more confused and speechless my whole life.

This was the girl who I used to hide under tables with during sports meet so we didn't have to go to practice. This was the girl who shared her lunch with me at school everyday. This was the girl I had doughnuts with every Sunday after church.

And she decided to throw our friendship away over a man?

Was he so irresistibly hot?

And mind you, I was such a fool I kept texting her even after I saw her flirt with the biggest crush I've ever had.

Maybe the guilt got to her, but she never replied.

And when she did, it was only because she was upset I hadn't wished her on her birthday.

I discarded that incident as a one time tragedy.

Because trust me, I love women.

I love hanging out with girl's over coffee, our sleepovers, baking together, and having conversations that no man has the emotional capacity to understand.

But maybe I'm cursed because this indeed was a recurring factor in my life.

The pattern repeats

One of my close friends started dating this guy who I used to be friends with.

However, I realized my friend started moving weird in my life out of nowhere.

I told her about this guy I was seeing, and the next day I see she has followed him. A complete stranger.

When I asked her why, she said it was to make sure he was treating me right.

I laughed it off.

During our friendship I liked a total of three guys. Whenever I told her about it, the very next day she already follows and even TEXTED one of them.

I could sense a snatching competition that I didn't know I signed up for.

One fine day I'm at her house and she breaks it to me that her boyfriend has a crush on me…

I'm dumbfounded but everything starts to make sense.

Why she's been chasing after my relationships and crushes

Why she's been in a secret competition with me

It all added up so quickly.

It made me wonder why sabotaging my love life was her solution.

Your loser boyfriend is the one who needs to learn a lesson.

But let's forgive him and punish me instead!

Once again I lost a friend.

Why?

A man.

However, I just thought of it as teenage hormones and let it go.

The final straw

My trauma resurfaced when last week the cycle repeated.

I was out with my girl and had the perfect day planned for us.

Two men came to speak to us and unfortunately the guy I was speaking to asked for my contact but her guy didn't.

Awkward but I tried to make her feel like it didn't matter.

But her switch flipped and the sweet girl I knew disappeared.

All this time I hyped her up and she always went on and on about how so many guys hit on her.

I was honest and said it was rare for me.

But the one time I get asked out, she's totally bummed out.

I do understand that it may have been unpleasant, but why are we taking this out on me?

Still I was polite but I couldn't help but realized how I was being treated.

I realized that the friendship was working as long as she was in the spotlight.

The question I keep coming to

So genuinely, women

Why do we hate each other?

And why is it that men still have that kind of power to destroy what we built?

I see women having healthy friendships with each other and I crave it more than anything.

But I fear our ending.

As someone who never hesitates to let you borrow my makeup and clothes. As someone who would stay up all night plotting with you on how to approach your crush. As someone who will come to throw eggs at your ex's house.

I wonder why you cannot listen to my love life without hitting up my man. I wonder why you don't ever tell me I'm pretty. I wonder why, why,why.

However, I refuse to stereotype women.

The common denominator in all these stories lead me back to male validation.

I am not a man hater in any way, but it must be discussed that in most situations our insecurities, betrayal, and competetion in regards to men stirs up alot of conflict. This is what prompts us to make unwise and insecure decisions in our friendships.

As women, this is not an excuse.

It should be a realization.

A realization that maybe you need to raise your standards, stop staying shut when you're clearly being wronged, and to respectfully call out the actions of these men.

What if we choose each other instead?

Girls,

I hope we all come to learn that men are replaceable.

You don't have to settle for a loser.

Because genuine, charming, loyal, mature men exist.

God didn't stop creating cute men after he created that one guy.

But what's irreplaceable is a friendship that stays through it all.

It's totally okay to communicate with your girlfriends. Let them know when you feel crappy about how a guy treated you. Because trust me any sensible woman would defend and stand by you.

What you shouldn't do is lable her as the enemy.

Men keep finding ways to avoid accountability.

And a great way to do this is by turning us against each other.

Let's start calling men out when they cheat. He's the one who owed you loyalty, not the side chick. Trash him for what he did to you instead of labeling another woman a slut.

If your man has wandering eyes, it's his eyes that have a problem. It's not her outfit.

Furthermore, let's not forget that we are the prize.

The Bible says that he who finds a wife finds a good thing.

You are the good thing.

So you can relax and stop stressing about any man out there.

We do not need to compete with each other to win over a man.

That's just another way of centering men.

So can we all collectively drop this hatred for each other and realize how strong we are together?

Imagine a world where cheating doesn't exist because women will always report back to the girlfriend. And instead of defending her man, the girlfriend leaves him.

Imagine a world where we actually understood that one woman's beauty doesn't subtract from your own beauty.

Imagine a world where we don't compete against each other, but realize that we're so much more fulfilled when we rely on each other.

I know that we're so close to this.

I know that my experience doesn't define every single girl out there.

I have seen unconditional female love in my sister and this one girl I met 6 years ago.

It does exist.

If your friendships with girls have also been disappointing: I'm sorry.

If you've been lucky with the women around you: treasure them.

Let's rewrite this narrative.

Hello my lovely people,

This article is inspired by a question I've had for years:

Why are we so quick to compete with one another when we would be so much stronger together?

While this piece is rooted in my own experiences, I know they don't represent every friendship between women. I've experienced extraordinary female love too—in my sister, in lifelong friends, and in women who have reminded me that genuine sisterhood still exists.

My hope is that this article encourages us to raise our standards, protect our friendships, and stop centering men in places where loyalty should live.

I'm genuinely curious about your thoughts and experiences

Leave a comment

I'm the youngest daughter and I write about being the youngest daughter who loves deeply and feels everything even deeper.

If you relate to this article and want to read more of what I write all you have to do is click on subscribe

Subscribe now

Welcome to the family

With love

The Youngest Daughter

Dear future husband,

When I was little my mom used to wake me up with tea in bed. I didn't speak a word until I finished my tea. I still need my tea before I can handle any social interaction.

Could you make me a cup of tea every morning?

Dear future husband,

Whenever I got in trouble at school, I would run to my sister so she could fight my battle with me. I had such confidence that I was never alone because I had her with me.

Could you be my strength when I'm troubled?

Dear future husband,

I've never slept alone my whole life. I grew up but my fear of the darkness never went away. The comfort of my sister next to me in bed allows me to close my eyes without fear.

Could you fall asleep with me every night?

Dear future husband,

I call my best friend crying and I end the call laughing. She makes me forget what I was sad about in the first place.

Could you cheer me up when I'm down?

Dear future husband,

I love shark movies so much that my sister takes me to the cinema to watch it. I know she pretends to laugh when I'm laughing and scream when I'm screaming. She was never into shark movies.

Could you watch my favorite movies with me?

Dear future husband,

My best friend bought me flowers without me even asking her to.

Could you buy me flowers too?

Dear future husband,

My best friend remembers the day we became friends and makes me a gift every year. We have been friends for six years now and she wishes me at 12 am on my birthday with a long paragraph.

Could we always celebrate each other?

Dear future husband,

I've learnt many things about love before I met you

These people have become my blueprint for love

I cannot love you if you're not kind

I cannot love you if you're not considerate

I cannot love you if you're not passionate

Dear future husband,

I know you will be amazing

Because the people around me have raised my standards so much

That I could never settle for a loser

Dear future husband,

I cannot wait to meet you

I've already met glimpses of you in the people I love

I hope the people around you are showing you glimpses of me

With love,

Your Future Wife

Hello my lovely people,

This article is for the people who are waiting for love to arrive in their loves. More often than not, the people around you shape your standards on how you should be treated. So my hope for you is that you're surrounded by many people who love you right and teach you new ways of loving.

May you never marry a loser and may you never believe that standards end in marriage. Standards are so essential for a fulfilling life and you don't have to wait till you meet a love potential to practice these standards.

Start off by looking at your circle. If I told you your husband would be a mix of all the people in your life, would you be relieved or scared?

Leave a comment

I think that tells you everything you need to know about the people in your life.

I'm the youngest daughter and I write about being the youngest daughter who loves deeply and feels everything even deeper. If you relate to this article and want to read more of what I write all you have to do is click on subscribe

Subscribe now

Welcome to the family,

With love,

The Youngest Daughter

I'm not ugly

Nor am I extraordinarily beautiful

I just look okay.

I'm not fat

Nor am I skinny

I'm midsized

I'm not boring

Nor am I super interesting

I'm just okay to have around

A mediocre life

A mediocre person

A mediocre story

Why don't I fall into one category?

I hate being in the middle

Because that just leaves you unnoticed,

Invisible, insignificant

Unable to completely relate to either side

But then I met You

You told me things about myself that made no sense:

Worth more than rubies

Worth more than Your life

Fearfully and wonderfully made

Your own masterpiece

For You created my innermost being

You knit me together in my mother's womb

So yes I'm ordinary to the world

But not so ordinary when it comes to You

To the ordinary;

I know Someone who can convince you

otherwise

His name is Jesus

Hello my lovely people,

This poem was originally supposed to end with “unable to relate completely to either side” but He changed that story for me.

You may be a Christian or you may not be; it doesn't matter because this poem is for everyone who feels like the middle child everywhere they go. I hope I was able to help you feel seen and not alone through my expression.

I think we're all like Matilda, an extraordinary little girl who ended up with a family who didn't notice. It wasn't that Matilda was worthless, her environment didn't care for it. But when she encounters Miss Honey; that little girl finds acceptance and an adult who finally sees how marvelous she is.

To all my Matildas, if you never found your Miss Honey: I hope you become her to someone who needs you.

And if you ever need to take a break from going unnoticed and feeling insignificant, remember this: Jesus loves you.

Leave a comment

I'm the youngest daughter and I write about being the youngest daughter who loves deeply and feels everything even deeper.

If you relate to this article and want to read more of what I write all you have to do is click on subscribe

Subscribe now

Welcome to the family,

With love,

The Youngest Daughter

My mom's words echo in my head every time I feel a tear drop from my eyes.

My throat tightening up trying to bottle up all my feelings and my eyes swelling up with tears.

Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry.

It will look like I'm doing it for attention.

But why do these tears come out so easily?

Maybe if I didn't cry as often as i did , then the value of my tears would increase.

“Don't give her the attention, just pretend you can't see”

I am a child, don't I deserve to be seen?

I wish you would have just held me and told me that all was well.

But you went around teaching others to forsake my pain.

My feelings became a circus and made everyone forget I was human too.

Yes, I am tiny, but my feelings aren't smaller than a full sized human being.

Look at the mess you created.

I'm an adult who refuses to believe she is seen, constantly demanding reassurance, driving the people I love insane.

But I can promise you, I'm driving myself insane more than I could ever express.

“Just talk about your feelings”

I can't… I cry about my feelings. I shout. I scream. I stomp my feet.

I grew up but my tantrums never faded.

Being the youngest meant I had to cry to be heard.

Not the silent kind of crying.

The laying on the floor, yelling at the top of my lungs, and looking at my mother just hoping she would pick me up and console me.

“Pretend you can't see”

She never consoled me.

Even sadder, she taught the people around me to do the same.

My feelings became something to be ignored,my emotions became a spectacle and my desperation to be seen only grew.

I'm no longer a baby that needs your consolation.

But now you ask me why I never talk about my feelings? “If I showed you my weakness, you would use it against me.

I remember going through the worst time of my life, I didn't want to show anyone that I'm not okay…specially not my mother.

But she saw me crying on the rooftop.

Oh how I regret it.

She announced that I was going to “jump off the balcony” because I was upset about a man.

I never asked for your comfort,

I never asked for you to come find me,

but you did.

And even though I was no longer a baby, you made me feel as helpless and shameful as I did back then.

Why were my emotions always such a burden to you?

Why were you so afraid to watch me feel?

Is it because I'm the opposite of you?

You who runs away from truth.

You who fools yourself into thinking you're happy.

You who acted proud of a life that was falling apart.

Did I scare you because I wasn't afraid to show my feelings?

Do you wish you could learn how to feel from me?

You taught everyone that it's okay to dismiss my feelings.

I had to fight battles to prove my feelings were worth attention.

I'm now an adult who fantasizes crying in the arms of a big strong man who pats my head and tells me I'm good.

Can you even blame me?

Hello my lovely people,

This article is for the ones who felt like their feelings never mattered. This is one of the most vulnerable things I have written and my hand shook as I wrote it. But genuinely, I hope this reaches the right audience.

If you've ever been told your feelings are too big, I hope you know that they were just too small to carry it. Specially, if you were emotionally neglected as a child - you didn't deserve that.

It might be hard to believe but there are people who are willing to fight for you and help you figure out your mess. So I want you to start being expressive again, I want you to start crying again, I want you to start feeling again.

However this time when you cry, I hope you don't cry because you feel like no one is hearing you. I hope that when you cry,you are met with softness and consoling.

This is a safe space if you want to share your thoughts and experiences

Leave a comment

I'm the youngest daughter and I write about being the youngest daughter who loves deeply and feels everything even deeper.

If you relate to this article and want to read more of what I write all you have to do is click on subscribe

Subscribe now

Welcome to the family,

With love,

The Youngest Daughter

Our relationship with the Lord makes no sense

It doesn't make sense to the angels:

Why would the King of the universe waste His time and honor on a kind so rebellious?

It doesn't make sense to the demons:

Just when they thought mankind was beyond saving - there goes Jesus to die to save them

It doesn't make sense to nature:

Why does He want our worship when they obey Him freely

It makes no sense

Except it does make sense to Him:

He won't give up on His sons and daughters

He won't hide His face from them

Because He knows without Him we are lost

Like sheep without a shepherd

Except it does make sense to man:

Man who loves God but somehow keeps falling

Man who is desperate for forgiveness because there is no worse punishment than to be separated from God

I don't have a context for that kind of love

It's one of a kind; unique

A story of a Son leaving the comfort of heaven,

Just to hang on a cross and die

A story of a man at His feet, watching Him suffer and

Slowly realizing that Jesus is doing this for me

So yes,

It makes no sense

Because our love was never rational

It fights to the very end

Because as long as I have Jesus and Jesus has me

We need nothing else

There's no Romeo without Juliette

And there's no Jesus without you

Hello my lovely people,

This article is from the depth of my heart and a love letter to the One who has my heart. Despite failing Him multiple times, we get back up to try again. And He accepts us back every single time. That's irrational, that's pure, that's live like no other.

I'm the youngest daughter and I write about being the youngest daughter who loves deeply and feels everything even deeper.

If you relate to this article and want to read more of what I write all you have to do is click on subscribe

Subscribe now

Welcome to the family,

With love,

The Youngest Daughter

The longer you're with a scent, the more you get accustomed to it.

That's why they say you brush your teeth at night for health and in the morning to keep your friends.

Believe it or not, if you think you have a bit of odor, the person next to you smells it 10 times worse.

Why?

Because you're always around yourself, and out of survival mode your nose became numb to your odor.

Therefore, trash can literally start to smell good if you start spending more time in a garbage dump.

In the same way, the more you learn to forgive and accept someone, the more you become numb to the fact that they treat you bad.

As habitually as you wake up and brush your teeth, you embrace them over and over again.

They embrace you back but with a knife in their hand.

Honey, you're bleeding.

Why can't you see?

Why are you letting them carve out a hole in your flesh, to the point you don't even realize they're stabbing you?

Honey, you're covered in blood.

But you don't seem to care.

Because you see him looking back at you covered in blood too.

But how I wish I could tell you that it's your blood on his hands.

He wouldn't even think a paper cut is worth your love.

He was just thirsty and you were the only one foolish enough to cut yourself and quench his thirst with your precious blood.

The more time you lock yourself with him in the garbage dump, the more people will start to assume you're trash too.

Can you blame a trash man for assuming you're a fake gem because you were in the dump?

I feel horrible for you because in my eyes you are a gem that belongs in the Jewel House - the Kohinoor, that's what you are.

But unfortunately,

the trash has started smelling good to you.

Hello my lovely people,

This article is for the one who is painfully watching a loved one settle for less. These situations can be so uncomfortable because you know if you speak up, they will cut you off. But if you don't speak up, you're betraying your morals. So you silently withdraw and watch that person fade into their choices.

This is personal to me because I feel this way when I think of 16 year old me, destroying myself over and over for a person who knew it and enjoyed watching me suffer. Everyone saw it, but I didn't. But now I do, but my hands are tied. So I grieve her, and celebrate my revelation at the same time.

I've also watched friends choose partners who obviously were poisoning them, but I couldn't do anything because the trash indeed starts smelling good.

I'm genuinely curious and want to know if you have ever experienced this.

Leave a comment

I'm the youngest daughter and I write about being the youngest daughter who loves deeply and feels everything even deeper.

If you relate to this article and want to read more of what I write all you have to do is click on subscribe

Subscribe now

Welcome to the family,

With love,

The Youngest Daughter

Exciting right?

Totally… until everyone starts talking about their boyfriend and their sixteenth monthasary date night.

And your update of the week is that you learnt how to do a headstand…

Sound familiar yet?

Or how about when you're on a girls trip and just had the best day ever, returned to your hotel to finally rest but your friend is smooching her boyfriend on the phone saying “no you hang up first baby”.

You're pretending not to hear a word but you hear every single word because you're on the same damn bed.

Only difference is that she's flirting with a man and you're texting your sister that you want to go back home.

Okay maybe that was too specific but you get the idea.

I find myself to be the only single person everywhere I go and everyone has found love but me.

Love actually seems to be running the opposite direction of wherever I'm going.

There used to be girls in school who used to secretly plan hangouts without you and it would slip out their mouths accidentally. The adult version of that gut wrenching feeling is being single. A secret club that I don't have a membership card for.

We convince ourselves of the stupidest reasons as to why we are single. Many girls assume it has something to do with their appearance.

I'll be the one to break it to you: it's not because you're “ugly”.

When I was 13 I was convinced my church crush didn't like me back because I was fat. So I religiously did YouTube workouts in my room ( the Chloe Ting obsession was unreal), starved myself until he replied to me (which wasn't very often).

I lost the weight but here I am - still single.

Here's a reality check: if it was your appearance, then tell me why all the ugly dudes still have girlfriends?

Singleness has nothing to do with your self worth

I've met countless people who rave about how their partner saved them from the trenches. Love is supposed to bring out the best in you and heal you in the ways you didn't even know you could be.

But I've also met countless singles who believe that they don't have a partner because they haven't “worked on themselves enough”. Love is not a reward for healing.

You are evidence of this truth.

I believe that you wouldn't hesitate to love a broken soul.

Brokenness needs love to glue a person back to fullness.

So I promise you, your future husband wouldn't be scared of your scars.

It infuriates me to think that people are walking around thinking they don't have a partner because they're damaged and wounded. The sick need a doctor.

You deserve to be loved just as much as anyone else.

You're not alone

Everyone around you seems to be in love. Though that can sometimes be annoying, it's also proof that love exists.

Only 5% of the global population never date.

And genuinely if you desire a partner, I can guarantee that you're not a part of that 5%.

Your desire is proof that love is for you.

One of my friends told me that the fact that you're craving for love is because your future self already has it. There's a future version of you hoping that you would keep believing and keep hoping because she already has the love you're looking for.

Also, if your taken friends are making you feel less than them for being single - immediately cut them off! My taken friends see me as a whole person, not an incomplete weirdo waiting to be picked. They remind me just how awesome I am and why I shouldn't settle for less.

I've had my fair share of bad experiences with taken people but I realized it had everything to do with them and nothing to do with me. Insecure people will make relationships their whole identity and reason for existence.

However, this is not normal. It's not acceptable for your “friends” to discard you once they find a partner. It's not okay for them to bring their boyfriend to every single hang out. It's definitely not okay for them to cancel on you because their boyfriend wants to hang out.

I have friendships with married couples who value my time and presence. We show up as whole individuals. And this is the norm. You just need better friends.

More than anything else, you yourself have to stop believing that your taken friends have more value than you. Because it's so evident in the way that you're letting them treat you.

Friendships are just as important as relationships.

In fact, they shape your mentality more than you're aware of.

So if you're struggling in your singleness and feeling overwhelmingly pathetic: please evaluate your friendships.

Love is coming to you, you don't have to go to it

I need you to start believing that life is happening for you and not to you.

Worst case scenario: love takes 10 years to find you.

But do you realize that one day it's actually going to happen?

You're going to find your person and flash news: you cannot get rid of them.

You will never be single again.

And us humans are complete hypocrites.

I guarantee that you will find yourself craving some alone time, wanting a solo trip, or you might even wish your partner would stop talking for just five minutes.

So I recommend that you use this time wisely.

Being single means you only have to consider yourself.

You can order yourself a whole slice of cake and no man will ask you for a bite.

You can watch your favorite movie at night because there's nobody to negotiate with.

I don't know what your idea of single paradise is but go live that out!

Imagine a man who has no passions, no career, no social life. His whole life is at pause because he was just waiting for you to come and decorate it.

An empty house, white walls, no furniture, just four walls.

Would you fall for him? Probably not.

Every girl has an idea of how they want their future home to look like.

Personally I want a colorful house, my own garden so I can grow vegetables, glass painted walls, mosaic lamps.

I have an entire Pinterest board dedicated to this.

The point is this: stop waiting for love to come to figure out who you are.

That's how you end up being the boyfriend obsessed friend in the future ( in an unhealthy way).

Your person will fall for who you are, so make sure you're discovering that as well.

It's okay to admit that you're clueless about who you are.

Admiting is the first step of changing.

Once I realized I didn't know how to enjoy my company, I made sure I changed it.

I practically dated myself and in that process I fell in love with who I am.

One more belief I don't agree with is that you need to behave a certain way to attract someone.

Dressing girly when you hate it, being soft when you're actually the loudest personality, eating like a rabbit on a date, all these things are taking away your authencity.

Don't just find yourself.

Take it a step further and be her too.

Sure you might scare away some men.

But at least you can rest assured knowing you're going to find someone who loves you for who you are.

Trust me, you don't want to lead a pretentious life.

Honest confession, I started watching the world cup because I thought it would be attractive to the guys I knew.

Truth was I didn't know anything about football,

I was just there supporting whoever looked the hottest to me.

So don't be like me,

don't be pretentious.

Be unapologetically you.

You cannot drive away the love of your life with your craziness.

In fact, they will just fall harder for you. Love does that to people.

I have a friend who claims her boyfriend just “keeps getting hotter and hotter”.

I know the guy and I swear she definitely sees him in a light no one else does (that's the polite way to put it).

Moral of the story is that there is someone out there for everybody.

But where the hell is your husband?

Beautiful things take time to bloom.

Oh so cliche

Put on your positive cap and hear me out:

A farmer doesn't plant a seed and expect a tree in the same month.

He doesn't go around crying saying he doesn't have a tree because he knows it's still growing its roots.

Faith is hope in the unseen.

To believe that just because it's not visible doesn't mean it doesn't exist.

I want you to trust the unfolding of your life because none of it is random.

You may believe in the butterfly effect.

You may believe in the invisible string theory.

Or you may believe in God's plan like I do.

I just hope you believe that love is out there for you.

The same way you wonder where he is, I'm sure he too is waiting for you.

As a Christian, we believe that men are missing a rib aka a wife.

He feels that yearning and that desire because he knows that it's not good for man to be alone.

God's plan is so vast that you cannot comprehend it.

However, think of your kids and your grandkids.

Similar to you, they too will desire love.

God considers their timeline - when they should be born, which school they need to go to, all the details.

So while you're stressing about a man and if he even exists,

God is aligning the paths for the generations to come too.

Also, to any Christian girls who think they have to convince God to give them a man by “being good”, stop!

Who do you think put that desire in you?

Matter of fact, who created love?

If He didn't create it, you wouldn't even know it.

So stop trying to convince God and start accepting that He is for you.

Okay by now I'm hoping you're convinced of three things

1. You will find love

2. You don't need to earn it

3. You need to be yourself

But how do we make the waiting easier?

Just have fun.

Spoiler alert: a man cannot be the only interesting thing in your life

Fun looks different to everyone but you can steal some from my list if you're clueless

• Travel: seeing new places, hiking new mountains, dipping in the ocean, eating street food. This is more on the expensive side but it opens up your mind in a way nothing else does.

• Gym: controversial buy destroying my muscles at the gym and investing in my health is actually so fun. I see the gym like an adult's playground.

• Reading: not at home, outside in a park. By a pool. Under a tree. At a cafe. Anywhere interesting. Plus it also expands your mind.

• Baking: I love baking but I also do this because my future husband deserves to say his wife makes the best banana bread.

If my list is boring, make your own and share it with us.

Leave a comment

Also, I have a strong belief that love happens when two people are at the right place at the right time.

This list may open you up to that right place, so be intentional about it.

Don't manipulate, don't guess.

Be true to who you are and let time unfold your love story.

Till then I hope you blast “where the hell is my husband?” and “people watching” in the shower.

If you're learning how to enjoy your own company, I recommend you read this article:

To the ones tired of waiting, this article might help you:

Hey lovely people!

I'm the youngest daughter and I write about being the youngest daughter who loves deeply and feels everything even deeper.

If you relate to this article and want to read more of what I write all you have to do is click on subscribe

Subscribe now

Welcome to the family,

With love,

The Youngest Daughter

Sensitivity can either be your best friend or your worst enemy. When the rain touched my skin, I felt every droplet with joy. But when I feel slightly unwanted, my emotions cause havoc in me. They wrestle against me.

Why is it that I can't brush things off?

Why is that I take everything personally?

Is it possible for me to ask the Lord for only positive big emotions and small negative emotions? Is it fair that I wish I could feel pain less and joy more in the same body? How would that work?

Jesus why do I carry so much emotion in me?

Why do I love people till it hurts me?

Then again I realize that You went through the same. Your love wasn't all butterflies, in fact it led You to death.

That's when I realized I could never be You.

How can I keep loving the ones who keep hurting me? And most of all how do I love myself when I realize that it's all my fault?

How is it always my fault?

Does anyone care about my side? My emotions?

Will someone ever be gentle with me?

Or do I have to keep being gentle with myself?

If at the end of the night I cry myself to sleep, did I live a pointless life? Is it bad that I wish someone would cry for me? for my love? Or is it just that worthless now?

Because I'm so freely available do they think they can want me whenever and abandon me whenever? Or should I consider it a privilege that they even let me hang out with them?

Am I the problem? The more I try to show my point of view, I realize I am.

If only I could stop caring so much.

If only I could stop paying attention to every little detail.

If only I could.

Well who knows but You.

Hello everyone,

This article is straight from my notes app, written over two years ago. Something about being 17 felt so heavy and I think you can get a glimpse of that here. I'm not posting this for sympathy or approval, but simply to say that it gets better. I'm 19 now and I've found where I belong and where I'm valued.

Alot of these feelings came because I was surrounded by the wrong people and in order to find the right people I let them go. So I want to encourage someone today to stop hanging out with the people who make your emotions seem dramatic, and your time feel worthless.

A hand that's already full doesn't have the space to receive more. So put everything down, evaluate, and if you end up with empty hands : good riddance!

Now let the Lord bless you because you finally have space to receive

So to anyone who relates, you're not alone.

Subscribe now

I would love to hear your thoughts

With love,

The Youngest Daughter

The last time I bought jeans I was 15.

I’m 19 now and a lot has changed.

Time has passed, my body has changed.

I can barely squeeze into these jeans anymore. Yet every time I want to wear jeans, I go back to the same pair, face the same disappointment and attempt to zip something that cannot be zipped.

But then I realized that the jeans weren’t the only thing I was forcing myself to fit into.

I was also trying to be who I was at 15. As if she was the most amazing girl ever and I’m just living all my days trying to be as wonderful as her.

She was skinny, had the longest hair, the perfect skin, she felt wanted and desired.

But the me now, well I’m not exactly skinny anymore, I chopped my hair off after a mental breakdown, and I get hormonal acne, and I’m craving for a love i haven’t yet found.

I crave for the 15 year old me as if she were my dead wife.

But then the Lord reminded me something today in those very jeans:

I am meant to grow

I’m constantly trying to squeeze into someone who has already passed away and given birth to a new version of me.

She had to pass away for me to be alive.

And if I were given the ultimatum to pick between me and her: I would always pick me. The 19 year old me.

Because even though I may not be as skinny, it’s because I stopped starving her.

Because even though I may not have long hair anymore, I chopped it off along with the memories attached to it.

Because even though I don’t have perfect skin anymore, I stay up late sacrificing perfect skin for a career I love.

Because even though I’m not desired anymore, I recognize that I have cut off access from those that don’t deserve me.

So yes, she may be the ideal.

But she was impossible to maintain and enjoy life in.

So I grew.

And I will buy myself some new jeans

Because I’m done squeezing myself into tiny spaces

I’m allowed to take space

Hello everyone,

I wrote this out of a place of declaration to myself that I’m proud of who I have become and I let go of the ghost of who I used to be.

So to anyone who relates, you don’t have to be picture perfect - you just have to feel genuinely good about yourself.

Subscribe

I would love to hear your thoughts

With love,

The Youngest Daughter

The silence we inherit

I’m hesitating to write on this topic as I wonder if it’s appropriate for a Christian, unmarried woman to talk about this. The word “sex” feels almost too taboo to say out loud. However I’m continuing to write because this shame is the very thing I want to talk about.

What we were taught to accept

I’ve grown up watching brown aunties talk about sex as something we must give to our husbands. It was spoken about as a responsibility, a burden we women would someday have to endure. I saw the distaste on their faces and came to realize sex served men and women just “gave it”.

What it was meant to be

Seeing the world from a biblical point of view is my priority. God created sex as a gift for the married, not a burden.

Where it begins to break

How did this gift turn into a burden? I hear the blame being passed on many things: children, lack of time, fatigue. However, I came up with a different answer: compromise.

God’s original design for sex was for the married couple, not the married husband. So how did we end up here? I believe it was compromise. When a woman doesn’t stay true to her body and has sex when she isn’t in the mood to: that’s compromise which translates sex into a duty. When a woman lets a man cross her sexual boundaries: that’s compromise which ends up with sex being something you have to tolerate. When a woman doesn’t communicate her sexual needs, it’s compromise on her own sexual fulfillment.

It pains me to realize that this wonderful gift has become such a burden. I am urging whoever is reading this: please don’t compromise. We are created with sexual desire and it is glorifying to God when a couple comes together.

The quiet cost of it

“Marriage ruined sex for me”, marriage is the platform for sex, I dived deeper into this statement and found very shock in statements. Many women say they stopped desiring sex after marriage- I wondered why. The responsibility and burdens of marriage left so many women exhausted by night - but there was their husband wanting sex when they could barely function.

The imbalance we don’t name

How is one party always in the mood and the other always tired? There has to be an imbalance somewhere. Does your husband help you with chores? Never they said. What about the children? No, he’s too busy.

The saddest thing I heard was - “ my child became my entire world and I couldn’t leave a little baby who depended on me for everything. But in the meantime my husband’s needs weren’t met so he got them met elsewhere”.

Choosing something different

I could turn this article into another sob story but that’s not my goal. My goal is to empower and encourage at least one woman out there.

Sex is not just for your husband. It’s for you as well. If it were just for him, God wouldn’t have wasted His time designing pleasure receivers for women. Be bold about your needs and communicate with your partner. Let him know what you like and don’t like. Be assertive when you’re not in the mood and don’t compromise because of guilt. Similar to how a joke is only funny if both parties laugh- sex is only funny if both parties are present, engaging, and communicating.

So, I don’t really care how I’m perceived for writing this. I don’t care what the aunties will say. I want this to set someone free- anyone free and see sex for the gift it is.

PSA: I’m not here to argue or talk about sex before marriage. It’s a conversation about what happens within it. I’m writing about how something sacred becomes something endured.

Hello everyone,

If you made it to the end of this, thank you for staying.

This piece isn’t just about sex. It’s about agency, communication, and truth — especially for women who were never taught they were allowed to have all three.

If even one part of this made you pause or feel seen, I’d really love to hear from you.

You can leave a comment, share this with someone who needs it, or subscribe if you want more writing like this.

Subscribe

I’m trying to build a space where we can talk about the things we were told to stay quiet about.

Every girl dreams of her own princess story: one where Prince Charming will come and save her from her miseries.

But for me it was all I dreamt about, thought about and wanted ever since I could remember.

A girl’s first love is meant to be her father. He teaches her the standard of love she should accept. He teaches her how precious and desirable she is. He tells her to never settle for someone who doesn’t love her as much as her papa does.

But my father was different.

He was distracted.

He wasn’t satisfied with our little family.

He was angry.

He wasn’t my first love but he taught me a lot about what I thought love should be and what I would accept in love.

I thought love was something you had to fight for.

That I had to be my skinniest and prettiest self so that he wouldn’t have a chance at being distracted.

I thought men were naturally angry and it was my job to take care of his hands after he punches a wall.

I remember feeling like it all depended on me.

My behavior,

My attractiveness,

My ability to forgive.

That’s what would make a relationship work.

But it still didn’t work out.

I tolerated.

I compromised.

I remained silent.

Yet, the blame was on me again.

Then I realized the only two men I trusted, one being my father, showed me time and time again that I just wasn’t enough.

This realization alone cannot cure someone’s desire for love. It only highlighted that desire as one that will remain unmet.

So there I was,

love hungry and starving.

When I met Him

That’s when I met Him and He told me that He was my Father and His Son was my Lover and one day He would bring me to a son of His who will love me like Christ loved the church.

This promise was exciting.

But I overlooked everything- my Father and my Lover- because I just wanted male love.

So, what was meant to be a promise turned into a burden.

I scanned every guy and asked God:

“Is he the one Jesus?”

Tired of waiting

But lately I’ve been tired of waiting around for love.

Almost believing that my life wasn’t going to start till I knew I was married.

This can be quite funny to hear from a 19 year old.

I know I have my whole life ahead of me and I know it happens when you least expect it.

But what if I’m always expecting, always scanning and always searching?

Well, I don’t have the answers for you.

But I do have a decision instead:

I don’t want to waste my life on love.

Waiting for love to arrive so I can finally begin my life.

Instead, I want to live so boldly and freely that love meets me everywhere

The decision

I made that decision at 18.

Specifically on March 1st 2025 - right after I took a sneak peek at my past and realized it could never be my future.

It didn’t work out because I would have hated it.

It’s March 8th 2026 as I’m writing this.

How did one year of living boldly and freely change me?

Let me tell you.

What happened when I stopped waiting

I got comfortable being alone.

What used to be so unfamiliar, now has become my comfort.

I took myself out for dinner, spent Saturday’s at the park eating Subway, sang my heart out at karaoke and other complete freedom to choose what song to play next.

I realized just how fun I am to be around.

So naturally I stopped wasting my time on people who couldn’t see my worth the way that I did.

I learnt that God was my provider.

As much as I loved going out, Bangkok is quite pricey.

But when I needed dinner to be paid, it was paid by His provision.

When I wanted to feel loved, He got me flowers sitting on my hotel table.

I realized that God was my provider and the pressure of marriage as a method of provision was taken away.

Love met me everywhere I went.

As soon as I made this decision, God was determined to show me good men still exist.

The men I met were so incredible that my faith in manhood was restored.

Now I can confidently say that good men exist and I will be married to one someday.

And most of all,

I realized I am whole not because of a man but because of the price that was paid for me on a cross.

So if you’re reading this and relate I want to challenge you to live boldly and freely.

Here are five specific things I want you to do:

1. 1. Monthly solo dates: pick the location, dress up, give yourself some princess treatment.

2. 2. Monthly friend dates: go out for coffee with a new friend every month, go to a new cafe, take pictures together, and genuinely get to know them. (Also be the one to initiate plans and keep in touch).

3. 3. Go on a trip: I don’t care if it’s solo or with your friends- as long as it’s people you actually like. Go somewhere you’ve never been before, eat the local food, talk to the locals and ask about their lives, talk to other travelers there and make plans with them.

5. Keep your boring self at home, this trip you’re saying yes to everything!

6. 4. Pray: I want you to sincerely pour your heart out and ask God to show you that there are good men in this world. This one prayer changed my life and I know it will change yours as well.

7. 5. Be open: don’t wait around for somebody to come and make your day fun, that’s your responsibility.

8. Don’t turn town dates because he’s not your usual type, just go.

9. What if he’s exactly what you need?

10. Talk to strangers a lot - getting to know people, even if it’s just for five minutes can really heal you and also bring in new perspectives.

If I could do it, so can you

Hello everyone,

I’m the youngest daughter and I write about my life as the youngest, how it’s like to feel everything so deeply, love everyone even deeper.

If you relate to this article and want to read more of what I write,

all you have to do is click the subscribe button below and join this little corner of the internet

Subscribe

welcome to the family

I have never betrayed my Starbucks order

It’s the same every single time

Caramel macchiato with one pump of hazelnut syrup

& three pumps of sugar

The moment I tried it, I loved it

There was no need to explore another order

I know my pizza order by heart

My fingers place the order in thirty seconds :

One medium double cheese

& one medium garlic cheese

With extra garlic dip

I’m not curious about what else is on the menu

I felt the same way when I first met Him

My love, my heart, my all

If He gave His life away for me;

I don’t care about the ones who didn’t.

My Jesus, my Savior,

My all in all

So no matter what you question,

Don’t question my loyalty

And no matter what you use,

Don’t use my loyalty against me

Because I never get tired of what I love

Hello everyone,

When I wrote this I realized something about myself.

I am the kind of person who stays loyal to the things I love.

When I find something I love, I keep choosing it.

And my faith feels the same way.

I know there are many voices, may ideas, and many beliefs in the world

But when I met Jesus, I found love.

If someone gave their life for you, what else is there to search for?

My loyalty to Him comes from my love for Him

And love when it’s real, doesn’t constantly look for alternatives.

If this poem resonated with you, thank you for reading. And if you also write, reflect, or wrestle with faith and identity, you’re welcome to stay here. You can subscribe to this space and become a part of this little community I’m building. And if you’ve already subscribed, thank you for your support

Subscribe

The words we almost said

Don’t you ever wonder how many people almost spoke, almost confessed, almost sent that text but later decided it was better to die?

I believe that words in general have power - even the ones you swallow. Specially the ones you swallow. They eat away at your heart and mind with a regret so deep it pushes you to vomit those words out.

The mercy of confessions

That’s why confessions are so beautiful and poetic. My heart cannot be at peace till you know of my love and admiration of you. My mind has blocked out every negative outcome because it just wants you to hear the words my soul has been imprinted with. The gush of relief when you finally confess, when you finally speak, when you can finally breathe again - nothing compares to it.

When silence becomes a weight

But what happens to the ones who cannot speak? The words continue to eat away at your heart and mind till you finally realize the regret has killed you. Your heart is shattered, your mind is unstable, and your breath halts. Those unsaid words fully take over the human body, giving yourself a slow, painful, agonizing death.

The courage to speak

Why are you so scared to speak? Why do you think your voice can’t change the course of your life? A confession guarantees two possible outcomes: acceptance or redirection.

So, the next time you feel stuck, I hope you give in to your body and vomit those words out. I have a strong belief that you will be able to deal with the outcome. I also pray that it will be the outcome you desire - if not remember, it’s the outcome you needed.

Hi everyone,

I wrote this article because I want you to speak.

If there are words quietly sitting in your chest right now, maybe this is your sign to let them out.

And if this piece resonated with you, click the subscribe button so you become a part of this community

• - The Youngest Daughter

Subscribe

Why am I so aware?

I feel the silence wash over me

I feel the whispers behind me

I feel your judgement wash over me

What you thought I missed,

I caught before you even spoke it

Why am I so aware that

It turns into despair

I wish I wasn’t aware

I wish I didn’t notice everything

Because then your jabs would have

No power over me

Because then your evil wouldn’t

Reside in me

Please take away my magnified eyes

And give me blissful ignorance

so powerful that their glances

Will lose their power over me

• - The Youngest Daughter

Hello,

Growing up i always felt like every move of mine was being monitored and given meaning. What was meant to be sensitivity turned into hyper vigilance. I wrote this poem to express the effects of being hypersensitive to your surrounding. This is a burden that I no longer want to carry.

If you relate to this, I want to welcome you into my community. This is a safe space to grow, to be yourself, and to share.

I write for the youngest daughters, people who feel deeply, and love even deeper. If that sounds like you, what are you waiting for. Click the subscribe button below and become a part of this little family

Subscribe

The fear of being left behind

Everyone has their own fear: heights, darkness, cockroaches. Mine just happens to be being alone. The idea of being the only one left at home while everyone else has somewhere important to be. I sit quietly waiting, anxious that the silence will eat me up. When will someone come and set me free from this misery.

I feel almost as pitiful as my dog who waits restlessly for my return, time paused and sleeping on the couch. After all, what’s the purpose in being alone when you derive all your identity from your friends and family? I don’t recognize this body I live in. In fact, I find myself the most awkward person to hang out with. Oh Lord, please return and set me free from this misery.

I despise solitude with a fiery passion. I find myself fingers dialing my best friend the minute I’m alone in my room. I refuse to sleep alone, so I sleep with my sister at the ripe age of 19. I hate eating alone so I would rather starve till I find another hungry soul.

No one is coming to save you

But what do I do when my best friend doesn’t pick up the call?

What do I do when my sister is not in town to share the bed with me?

What do I do when everyone is full and only I am minutes away from fainting?

Do I talk to the wall, stay awake forever, or starve to death?

I couldn’t avoid myself forever. How can I run away from someone who is beside me in every waking moment?

So I gave myself a chance.

As silly as it may sound, I tried to befriend myself. Before my feelings reached anyone else, I took out my prayer journal and prayed fervently. I hung up fairy lights in my room and took my favorite teddy to sleep with me. I learnt how to bake my favorite cookies so I never ran out of desert.

Why do you think your best friend and sister love you? Because they like who you are. Maybe it’s about time you started liking yourself as well.

I urge you to break through the silence and anxiety of who you might be. Remember life is not about finding yourself- it’s about creating yourself. Don’t spend your life at war with yourself because you are the most permanent person in your life.

I promise that you will end up finding a friend for life.

with love,

The Youngest Daughter

Subscribe

Imagine always doubting your potential while people are praying that you wouldn’t realize the gift you have. All you hear are negative voices demanding that you cannot reach your wildest dreams, but what if I told you that those very voices are terrified of you taking even one step towards those dreams.

They know that you are a fighter; that when you set your mind on something you won’t back down till you reach it. See, people are scared of your determination because it forces them to stand face to face with the dreams they gave up on for the sake of stability. Those dreams have turned into a nightmare that they avoid sleep just to run away from it.

But there you are reminding them that pursuing your dreams was and is an option. They label giving up as stability, maturity, and settling down. Don’t you dare let them force those labels on you.

But most of all, don’t you dare put those labels on yourself. I urge you to believe in yourself as much as those against you.

When will you take the first step? It doesn’t have to be a perfect step- all it has to be is a step, one that takes you forward. It can be a baby step because as Olivia Dean said you cannot fall back if you fall forward.

I know you’re a perfectionist, I know you don’t feel ready yet, I know you will start next year for sure. But a friendly warning I send your way: a person who starts has more room for success than a person who stands motionless waiting for the perfect time to start.

Get out of the box they put you in and run wild with the endless possibilities I know you’re capable of achieving. Alas, the same person who calls you cringe for posting will be in your requests asking for a collaboration because you kept going.

Finally, it doesn’t have to be something grand, it doesn’t have to make sense to anyone but you, it doesn’t have to be revolutionary. It could be as simple as getting that bob you always wanted, or as courageous as quitting your job to travel the world, or being the first in your family to get a degree.

I don’t have to give you ideas. I know you already have a very specific dream buried in your heart. So all I can do is pray that you would believe in yourself as much as those who are against you.

I wish my older sister had an older sister.

I wonder who convinced her to get out of bed when she wanted to give up. I wonder who taught her how to braid her hair. I wonder who held her when mom and dad were fighting.

If you want someone who wants the best for you, get an older sister. But a sister is not someone you can get, it’s someone you are gifted. However, I realize that older sister’s never grew up with an older sister. How strange and unfair it is that I’ve never had to spend a day not knowing her but she knew of a life I didn’t exist in.

It’s engraved in a younger sister to want to be someone just like their older sister. But who did she look up to? Whose map did she have to follow? In a room full of people I would run to her but who did she have to run to?

The older you become, the more you realize she never had the same support system you did. But if I could prove to her how much that means to me, I wouldn’t miss an opportunity.

When every fiber of my being wanted to compromise and settle for less, she fought for me with a passion that I failed to have for myself. When I wanted to give up on myself, she continued to pull me back up. When words couldn’t express my feelings, she sat down and drew them out for me.

How can it be? To love someone even more than they love themselves? I believe it’s a superpower that God has handed out just to the older sisters.

But who is going to love the older sisters?

We will. If I could take all her pain and cry all her tears for her I would. If my pain meant her happiness, I would happily accept my fate. If she doesn’t believe in herself, I would fill her cup with my belief in her.

In my eyes, no one is better than my sister. Her passion, her drive, her boldness, her creativity, her love. If I could be half the person she is, I would be very proud of myself.

So it deeply saddens me to realize that my older sister never had an older sister.

I wish my older sister had an older sister.