Filiae Meae
by Crystal Craig

You are not lost.

You are becoming.

I did not weave you from stardust and blood

so you would shrink to fit

someone else’s stillness.

I shaped you to hold opposites—

to dance with chaos

and still return to center.

You crave peace,

and still—

I planted wild in your bones.

That is not a mistake.

It is your compass.

Let what mirrors you come close.

But when the unfamiliar arrives,

do not flinch.

I send challenge

not to punish you,

but to sharpen the edges

of your becoming.

Set your boundaries,

daughter.

Speak them like sacred vows.

They do not make you selfish.

They make you sovereign.

But do not let the armor

become your skin.

Keep your heart open—

soft, yes—

but not unguarded.

Know what is yours to carry

and what must be returned to sender.

You are allowed to feel deeply

and still move forward.

To fall apart

and still be whole.

To scream into the wind

and then make dinner.

You are not too much.

You are just enough

for this moment,

and the next.

Do not aim only to survive—

you were made to bloom

even under heavy skies.

Resilience is not endurance alone.

It is the art of rising

with your soul intact.

Stay close to your truth.

Even as it changes.

Even as you change.

I am with you

in every tremble of your becoming.

And I will not let you forget

how sacred it is

to be exactly who you are.