June 5, 2025
Letters to Abigail
Dear Abigail,
One day, you’ll start dating.
Boys will inevitably try to steal your time in hopes of winning your heart.
Already, I see the maternal instinct in you—
even with childhood still fresh on your ten-year-old breath.
That instinct, that intuition, is a gift.
It will be a treasure to any boy learning how to become a man.
You already have this quiet way of reading people.
The way you choose gifts, noticing what others value…
You make souls feel seen.
And yes, you are beautiful.
You make the honor roll.
You fly across the gym floor with fierce grace.
But those things?
They’re ornaments on a tree.
I still remember the first year we cut down our own Christmas tree.
I didn’t want to smother it in glitter and mesh and plastic.
Its natural shape, its scent—it was already perfect.
It didn’t need decoration to be worth looking at.
You don’t either.
Boys are going to see that.
Boys are going to like that.
Which means it’s time I tell you something important—
Something that might help you tell the difference
between the boys who are worth your time…
and the ones who only want to borrow your shine.
The right ones won’t just compliment the ornaments.
They’ll notice the tree.
They’ll see how deeply your roots run.
They’ll want to protect your growth—not prune your branches.
They’ll sit in your presence like it’s shade in summer,
not just a place to rest when it’s convenient.
The wrong ones will clap when you’re dazzling.
The right ones will stay when you’re dim.
He won’t look like the man in the movies.
But you’ll know he’s worth your time
because his kindness will be steady,
and his respect will never waver.
He won’t always choose you over his friends—not at first.
But even when he’s not by your side,
you’ll feel secure knowing his heart chooses you every time.
It will respect you.
It will soften for you.
He’ll spend the last dollar in his pocket
just to take you to the restaurant you’ve been dying to try.
He might not even like that kind of food—
because he didn’t show up for that.
He showed up for you.
And you’ll feel it.
His eyes will light up at your smile.
They’ll shine and soften all at once—
like a candle in the dark.
Not so bright that it exposes,
but just enough to illuminate the space around you.
When you find that kind of light,
you’ll know it’s real.
And you’ll know you’re home.
Mother and Daughter
Love Always, Mom
