To the girl who cries on break…
Not because she’s fragile—
but because she’s been holding too much,
for too long,
with no space to fall apart.
She exhales into the silence of stockrooms and bathroom stalls.
She dabs her tears with scratchy paper towels,
tells herself “just get through this,”
and swallows the ache like it’s part of the uniform.
She fixes her face.
She fixes her smile.
She walks back out with red eyes,
pretending the weight she carries isn’t crushing her spine.
But Girl —
you shouldn’t have to be this strong,
this often,
this silently.
You deserve more than survival.
You deserve softness you don’t have to earn.
You deserve a shift in your life—
not just at work.
So this is for you.
Not to tell you to keep going,
but to tell you that your pain is real.
And still—
you are sacred.
Even like this.
With all my heart,
Dear Rachel
