Moms and dads come in all sorts of rare forms. You’ve got the over-protective mom, the dad with corny jokes, the master chef, the hard worker, and so many more. Some people may have a parent that plays the role of both mom and dad. Others may call someone who isn’t their biological parent mom or dad. It doesn’t require DNA to be a parent. I’m very accepting of the fact that four people call me their daughter. I’m a daughter of divorced/remarried parents, and I’ve come to learn that it doesn’t mean that any of them love me any less. I always used to be jealous of my friends who don’t have divorced parents, but hey, I get double the love!
To my step parents,
Thank you for loving my parent, my siblings, and me. Both sides of my family became whole again because of you both. I love you, and I’m grateful that you are a huge part of my life. Also, thank you for being my friend. Even though I look at you as a parent, I also know that I can talk to you about things that I’m not ready to bring up to my mom or dad yet. I know that it must be hard for my parents to know that my brothers and I consider our stepparents our other mom and dad. However, you’ve come into our lives and loved us and disciplined us like your own.
Thank you for bringing your boys into my life and giving me the opportunity to call them my brothers. They are my best friends, and they drive me crazy. I’m lucky to have them in my life. I can’t imagine what my life would be like if I didn’t know them. I love watching you teach my brothers to fix cars, how to cook, and helping them with homework. It makes me happy to know they love you, too.
I know there have been many times when we didn’t see eye to eye, and I can’t say the thought never crossed my mind to yell, “You aren’t even my parent.” At the end of the day, though, you are. You have taken my siblings and I and loved us like your own. Thank you for giving me the perspective that families come in all shapes and sizes. There have been times I wasn’t easy to parent, but I know you were always looking out for my best interests. I can’t begin to imagine how difficult it must have been in your shoes, too; trying to parent children who were resentful that you filled the spot where our mom or dad was supposed to be.
I can’t imagine having a wedding some day and not having both my dads walk me down the aisle and both my moms help me pick out the perfect dress. I want my whole family to be accepting of each other and be whole, even if just for one day, because to me every person there is important to me and has played a huge role in who I’ve grown up to be today. I’ve learned endless things about unconditional love from my stepparents.
I love you,
Your daughter.
