Purple Shoes

Purple shoes dancing across the floor.

Pink tights on short chubby legs

And a sparkly tutu

So loved, little girl, so loved

I wish I could stop this moment in time. 

Where you twirl and whirl across the room

Followed by a trail of giggles reminiscent of bubbles.

Today you know that you are loved

Today you know that you are beautiful.

Today you know that you are a ballerina, and maybe an astronaut or a fashion designer.

Does it even matter because you can be all those things and rock & roll and then quickly

Don your little red cape and be a superhero.

How do we hold onto this?

Not just for you but for all the little girls out there.

Who will too quickly grow up to obsess over their weight, their eyebrows and whether or not

Their hair is curly or straight wishing that if it were curly it would be straight and if it were straight that it would be curly.

How do we convince them that they are wonderful and beautiful and superheroes?

That they are loved and that they can dance their dance and we will love it.

That they can be dancers and astronauts and fashion designers or that it’s ok to take a nap if they are tired.

That they don’t need to fit into someone else’s mold.

That they don’t need to be human doings

That who they are is enough and that they should be allowed to giggle and hug the dog.

That they can mismatch their socks if they want to.

How do we take the gleeful self assured 5 year old and turn her into a gleeful self assured 15 year old or 25 year old or 50 year old woman?

Good enough, graceful enough, strong enough, bold enough, more than enough to just be. 

To have the freedom and the joy that is their right and carries it with them throughout their life.

Never to feel that they are found to be not enough because their legs are chubby or their plies are not perfect.

I wish somehow I could wrap up the confidence of that little heart and keep it in a jar to share with you whenever you need it.

But already I see the tears when you feel that you don’t fit in.

That you are not enough

 That you are not the right kind of girl.

The best kind of friend

That you are not strong enough, or fast enough or pretty enough or good enough.

You are

You are

You are

Hear me …. You are

See yourself the way you were, the way you are.

Good enough, superhero good enough.

Do not listen to that little insecure voice, that is not your voice or my voice.

That is not a good voice.

You must know – today and tomorrow and the day after that

That purple shoes and pink tights and a sparkly tutu are all you willl ever need … well that and a red cape that makes you a superhero.