Echoes of the Lost

To the girl I once I knew

To the girl staring back at me,

I miss you.
I miss who you used to be.
I miss the idea of you.
I miss everything you once stood for.

I miss the hope you carried.
I miss the light.
I miss the way your smile reached your eyes.

And maybe it’s finally time for me to apologize.

You didn’t deserve to be treated the way I treated you.

So I’m sorry.

I’m sorry for making you feel like you were never enough.
I’m sorry for pointing out every flaw and letting them overshadow the things that made you incredible.
I’m sorry for making you feel like you had to change yourself to fit in, even if it hurt you.

I’m sorry for putting others' needs before yours, as if yours didn’t matter.
I’m sorry for calling you stupid, for letting impatience overshadow compassion.
I’m sorry for every time I made you feel small, as if you didn’t have a voice worth hearing.
I’m sorry for making you believe that success was the only measure of your worth.

I’m sorry for not defending you when they said you’d never amount to anything.
I’m sorry for believing them and for letting their words become a constant reminder, like an anchor holding you down.
I’m sorry for letting those voices live rent-free in your mind, echoing louder than your own dreams and worth.

I’m sorry for keeping you in relationships that didn’t serve you, where you felt small and unseen.
I’m sorry for making you believe that love meant hiding yourself and shelving your needs, as if they didn’t matter.
I’m sorry for not realizing sooner that you needed protection; instead, I fed you to the wolves.

I’m sorry for telling you to give up when things got hard.
I’m sorry for making you feel like a burden, for making you think that your struggles didn’t deserve space.
I’m sorry for the moments when I made you believe that the world would be better off without you in it.

I’m sorry for calling you broken.
I’m sorry for drowning you out.
I’m sorry I didn’t listen when you screamed.
I’m sorry for not recognizing that the girl staring back at me was me.

I'm sorry

I’m sorry for never giving you the chance to be free.

I hope one day you will be able to forgive me.

Sincerely yours,
The you who's learning