An Open Letter From Your Secret Admirer

I admire you. 

I admire your ability to keep your composure when others try everything in their arsenal to yank you down. They may loft every weapon at their disposal, but none are strong enough to get inside your mind. To change you into someone you know you are not and knock you off-balance into a retroactive cycle. To force you to turn against yourself.

I admire the courage you exhibit every time you face an obstacle head-on and refuse to back into your comfort zone. For all the times you have dismantled stereotypes, broken the rules, and invented a route society told you that you could not wander down. I admire your willingness to try new foods, visit unexplored countries, and adopt rituals from foreign cultures. For all the failures you have learned from instead of engaging in negative self-talk. I admire the way you keep your head high and your crown on straight when surrounded by strangers who chip away at you—the very strangers who do not know, and could never know, who you truly are. 

I admire your honesty, loyalty, and outlook on life. I admire your work ethic, too, because no matter the situation, you always find new ways to rise. To leave an impression on every single person who crosses your path. To shock the world. Most of all, I admire the control you exercise over your mind. You do not let your thoughts define you, and you do not force your subconscious to create a better universe for yourself by adjusting the world to fit your tempered lens.

I admire you for everything you stand for. 

I wish one day the world would lay down its pride and take a minute to learn how to be just like you. Thank you for being you.