Thank You

Thank you to the family that raised me and made me who I am.
Thank you to the matriarchy that raised me harshly amid pure male chauvinism, teaching me by contrast the deepest value of being a woman.
Thank you to all the assholes I have met along the way.
Thank you to those who tried to steal an idea from me.
Thank you to those who made themselves pathetic in my eyes by doing so.
Thank you to those who tried to abuse me just because they were my employer.
Thank you to those who left me out on the street because I wouldn't fuck them.
Thank you to those who evicted me because I hadn't been able to pay a month's rent.
Thank you to those who tried to cast a shadow over my work by making up bullshit because that was all they had.
Thank you.
I owe my strength to you, and thanks to that strength I now live, survive, and laugh in your faces without you even realizing it.
And for that I thank you.
Just as I thank the family that raised me harshly.
The matriarchy that raised me amid pure male chauvinism, teaching me by contrast the deepest value of being who I am.
Daughter, mother, wife, lover, granddaughter, woman.
Descended from a line of women who smuggled butter and coffee, risking their lives at sea just to give their parents and children a moment of happiness.
I have no one to risk so much for, but I know I would be ready to do it.
And for that, too, I thank you.