A Heartfelt Letter To My Sister

by Ryan Vegh

What can I say to you, my precious sister?
What can I do for you, to show you that you are loved?
My heart erupts in my inmost being,
Violently torn apart as I see your tears.
I yearn to see your face;
To see it beaming in brilliance.

And yet, when shall I see you?
And what shall your face truly convey?
For now I am estranged from you,
And any hope of seeing you again
Seems to rest in the will of another.
And if I saw you,
I fear that sorrow will have soaked your face.

For yours is a life of misery -
Separated from love,
Drowning in toil,
Longing for the sight of your son,
And desperately shouting out curses,
Wondering why you, of all people,
Ended up in this hell.

“Damned if I know!
Must be my worthless mother!
I mean, I sure ain’t no angel!
But God knows I didn’t choose this for myself!”

And out into the open air your words travel,
Thundering back to you in a deafening chorus,
Blasting from the blackened mouths
Of the people you love most,
As if somehow spewing darkness from their hearts
Will help you to find the light.

No, that ought not be!
Darkness cannot overpower darkness;
Only light can send the shadows to flight.
In the same way, evil cannot overcome evil;
But rather, goodness contains the power to bring life.

You needed love,
But you were given hate.
You longed for a hug,
But you were given a slap to the face.
You desired friends,
But they became your enemies.
You tried your best,
But “you won’t amount to anything.”

And on and on the ones who “cared”
Didn’t “care” if they hurled you into the dirt;
Didn’t “care” if they stabbed you in the back.
Instead they laughed!

So here I am, weak and feeble in heart.
And if you will hear my cry, then listen, dear sister:
You. Are. Loved.
Really, truly loved.
And it’s not because you did something amazing,
But because you, in and of yourself, /are/ something amazing.
You are special.
And you are lovely.

Sure, each one of us can be made into a monster;
I don’t doubt that even demons envy our deviousness at times.
Yet each one of us has been made for a purpose,
And that includes you.
You’ve been especially planted on this planet for a reason.

So whether you see yourself as lovely or dark,
Whether your friends and family call you worthwhile or disgusting,
Know this:
I see a beautiful person,
And I love you.

Even the One who formed your body
And sculpted your desires
Is desperately in love with you -
The One who searches your heart
And intimately knows your feelings.
He sees your secrets and He still cares for you.
He is slow to anger and abounding in love;
And if that’s the way He sees things,
Then who am I to say otherwise?

Do I like everything about you?
Of course not.
But then, I don’t like everything about myself, either.
So I choose to love you, sister.
And with these words I hope that you will see just how special you are.

With much love and heartfelt sincerity,

Your brother,
Ryan