~Mirrors are more than a fixture on a wall made of breakable glass and pretty frames. They are a portal to someone's soul, reflecting all of their deeply hidden fears, dreams, and desires🪞~
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SARAI
Today is finally my long-awaited super sweet 16th birthday that I've been anticipating since my 15th birthday. All of my past birthdays have always been amazing, but I have a feeling that this one is going to be the best, despite the fact that my mom won't be at my dinner party because of her disrespect towards my momma. I love my mom and nothing will ever change that, but I can't tolerate her mistreatment of my momma. I refuse to let her dark cloud of negativity overshadow my special day. I just hope and pray that for these meaningful 24 hours, this house can be free of drama and turmoil. I got an earlier start to my morning than usual, allotting myself plenty of time to add extra steps to my morning routine to ensure that I would look my best. After staying in the bathroom for nearly 2 hours, I came out and found a wooden breakfast tray sitting on my bed. It was adorned with Belgium waffles that were topped off with whip cream, rainbow sprinkles, and a single burning birthday candle, along with my smoothie that I drink every morning, a small vase of pink roses, and a note that was folded up. I smiled at the kind gesture, figuring that my mom or Taraji had snuck this in for me while I was in the bathroom, although it was most likely a joint effort. I closed my eyes and blew out the flame on the candle. My only wish is for my family to be at peace, and that includes my mom even though she's not very welcomed at this point. I'll make the same wish when I blow out all 16 of my candles tonight. Before digging into the fluffy, delicious-looking waffles, I unfolded the note on the tray and began to read it. As my eyes scanned over the heartfelt words and my brain mentally processed the emotion conveyed behind the calligraphy, a stream of tears found its way flowing down my face. From the first sentence alone, I knew that Taraji wrote the note. She's closed-off and hardened when it comes to expressing her feelings and showing affection, so the fact that she was able to open herself up and let all of this love for me flow out of her heart for me to see with my own eyes is making this the best birthday already.
Dear Sarai,
I wish that I could have been around to witness the first 16 years of your beautiful life. I thank God everyday that He is allowing me to be with you for the next 16 years that are to come, but I will always mourn the time that I missed with you. Despite the adversities that were placed in your path upon birth, you turned out to be the kind of young woman that I wish I could have been at your age. Sometimes I think that if I would have been more like you, I would have never gone to prison in the first place. You are my biggest inspiration. I look up to you in ways that I can't even begin to explain. Even though I'm older than you, I feel like there's so much that I can learn from you. You poses a certain grace and humility that can't be matched by any other human being on this planet. You are the best thing I never got to have, but I have you now, and I'm never letting you go. I promise that you will never have to experience another day without me. I feel like I'm becoming a better person just because I'm your mother. You are the love of my life, and it means the world to me that you accepted me in your life without question. I never knew just how brightly the sun could shine until I met you, and now my dark days are over. I know that only you can make a wish on your birthday, but my wish for you is that you are blessed with only the best of what the world has to offer, because you deserve everything and nothing less. Happy birthday, baby girl.
