Dear Pseudo Mom (or in my case, my aunt),
Thank you for being there. Really, I didn't know that I needed someone like you when I needed you. From the day Mom died, you have always been there for me, even if I didn't live with you yet. Thank you for inviting me over to ride horses every other week and offering your home to me. I never realized that I needed my family until I had it, and I would have never had it if it weren't for you.
Thank you for changing your life for me. I know it wasn't easy to just add someone to your family; you had go through the hassle of going to court, moving me to a new school, and fighting for me. I never really thanked you for that. If it wasn't for you I would have been miserable, and who knows if I would even be in college right now. If you hadn't turned your whole life around to adopt a teenager, my life would be so different. So, thank you for making those sacrifices.
Thank you for really being my mom. Sure, you're not her, and you're never going to be her, but you are my mother figure. You took me in as if I were your own and tried your best to raise me. You were a success. Thank you for getting upset with me, and teaching me (still) to have discipline and do the right thing. Thank you for teaching me priorities, and letting me go for my dreams.
Thank you for celebrating with me. When I needed someone to tell that I got a good grade, or succeeded in something, you have been the person that I can run to. Thanks for buying me ice cream on my 15-and-a-halfth birthday and thinking of me with lemonade or tea. Thank you for showing me I am special in little ways like that, but also in big ways. Thank you for always knowing what I needed and making sure I had everything to succeed.
I know that I haven't been the perfect "daughter," but thank you for letting me make mistakes, and still telling me when I mess up. I'm sorry I haven't always acted like a daughter, or I've been closed, or I've not spent enough time with you like I should. I know I should call you more, and write you letters, and I'm trying. I just don't tell you enough how much I appreciate you saving me. The past four years have been so different than the 15 before, but for the better. Because of you, I have become a better woman. Because of you, I am smarter, I try to be wiser, and I try not to make as many stupid mistakes; but we both know I'm not perfect. I will probably always have my "black blonde" moments, but thank you for accepting me and changing me. I can't get over how much you and everyone else in our family sacrificed for me to be where I am. It's hard to even imagine what life would be like without you.
I don't think I can really say it enough: thank you. I love you, even when I'm mad, even when I forget to call, even when I do things I know I shouldn't. I love you as if you were my real mom, and I know you love me just as much.
Love,
Your Pseudo-Daughter <3
