June

This is the first one I write directly to you.

I don’t always know how to say these things out loud, but I need you to know—I notice everything. Like how there’s always a Coke waiting for me. Cold, set aside, like you thought of me without needing a reason. It’s never asked for, never expected, but it’s always there. Just like the food—there’s always a plate, even when you didn’t know I was coming. You make a space for me, without needing a heads-up, like you’re always keeping the door open in case I walk through it.

And when I show up worn down, when the world has been too loud or I’m just too in my head to say what’s wrong—you never push. You just pull me in, hold my head like you already know the weight I’m carrying. You give me calm when I can’t find it myself. You make the air easier to breathe. And I don't think I've ever had that before—someone who just gets it, without needing a full explanation.

You give so much. With your time, your care, your attention—your heart. You give endlessly, effortlessly. You love in ways most people don’t even think to. You think ahead, you pay attention, you prepare, you give me comfort before I even realize I need it. You love me without demanding anything in return. No scoreboard. No conditions. Just a steady, open-hearted kind of presence that never asks to be acknowledged but deserves everything.

Thank you for that. Thank you for seeing me on the days I don’t see myself. For understanding me when I don’t have the words. For reading between the silences, for making me feel safe when nothing else makes sense. For showing up. Again and again. Without needing a reason, without needing to be asked.

Thank you for loving me with no performance, no spotlight—just with truth. For knowing what I need without me saying a word. For giving me pieces of peace I didn’t know I was missing. For being patient with the parts of me that are still figuring it out.

You are rare in a way the world doesn’t prepare you for. You care in ways that feel like home. And I don’t know what I did to deserve any of it—but I see it. I see *you*. And I’ll never stop being grateful.

I love you, Noura.