It takes a village is an African proverb that refers to the idea that many people are needed to provide a safe and healthy environment for a child. I would argue that this idea stems well past adolescence. The proverb implies that a child needs the support and guidance of many people to grow and develop. Since we never stop growing and developing we’ll always need our village.

I stand here, not alone, not by chance, not by accident.
I am the product of hands that held me up when I was too weak to stand,
of voices that spoke life when my own whispers wavered.
Of love so steady, it shaped the very ground beneath my feet.
The ones who clap the loudest, even when my steps are small,
who remind me that progress is progress,
and that I am not alone after all.
They are my late-night phone calls, my early morning prayers,
my you got this text messages and my I believe in you stares.

They are the laughter that echoes through my hardest days,
who know when I’m struggling, who know what to say.
The ones who remind me that storms fade away,
That darkness is chased by the light of the day.
They push me to rise, they catch me when falling,
They tell me my name when my purpose stops calling.

And so today, I pause—
Not to wish for something else, but to honor what already is.
To say thank you to the ones who held the ladder steady,
who built bridges when I saw only walls,
who called me strong when I felt small.
My village—
I carry you in every step I take.
Your love is woven into the fabric of my story,
your wisdom echoes in the choices I make.
And I pray—oh, I pray—
that I can be for someone else
what you have been for me.
So, here’s to you—
My roots, my wings, my safe place, my home.
I am because you are. Oh, how fateful.
And for that, I am forever grateful.