The women lined up behind me, and all around

And they wept because they witnessed my freedom

Our freedom

That which is mine because of them.

That which is theirs, because of me.

That which is ours because of one another.

How long had they been waiting for me to walk unrestrained upon this magnificent Earth?

How long have they been waiting to be free?

It wasn’t until this moment that I recognized with clarity my own freedom

Long have I known that I do not wish to see the world, but to feel her

And on this day, I felt all of her

On this day I became a real woman.