We were born into a world that claims to love us, but doesn’t really. They say we are ‘weak’. They say we are meant to be ‘delicate’. They tell us to sit still, to only speak when spoken to. They say “You are meant to be seen and not heard.” They refuse to look past our physical features. They want to confine us to certain  boxes. But we are greater than that.

We will not succumb to societal stereotypes. We will ride over the mountains that have been set before us. We will shatter glass ceilings. We are unrelenting, unflinching, unbowed, unbent, unbroken. So here’s to the strong woman. To the woman who takes life by the wheel and rides how she wants. You inspire. Here’s to the powerful woman, the double aught.  

To the woman who takes shots and never misses. To the woman who takes chances, the woman who takes risks. Here’s to the achiever, to the woman who wins. Here’s to trying and failing, but never giving up.

Here’s to daring to dream and daring to do.

Here’s to leather jackets and high-heeled boots. Here’s to skinny jeans and cargo pants. To headscarves and windbreakers. Here’s to fixing tires and changing oil. Here’s to greasy palms and blackened nails – they only make the manicure afterward worth it. Here’s to adventure – life on the open road, forging new paths. To the desert trails, forest paths and mountain trails. Here’s to the exhilaration, to the adrenaline rush. To feeling the wind in your hair and on your face. Here’s to bonding with nature – roughing it under the rain, in the sun or through snowy peaks.