You’ve followed me my entire life.

Sometimes in plain sight. Sometimes through shadows.

Always with the same intent: to erase me.

You’ve used silence, fear, manipulation, and a network of lies.

You've stalked me from the moment I took my first breath, cutting me off from family, culture, identity, safety, and joy. You’ve tried to bury me under shame, isolation, and silence.

You wanted me forgotten.

But Here I Am.

I’ve learned to live under surveillance.

I’ve learned to thrive with ghosts in the walls and knives at my back.

I’ve built a life, a business, a voice—and I built them on ground you tried to burn down.

You don’t frighten me anymore.

I know what you are.

I’ve stared it in the face for decades.

You’ve spent a lifetime trying to silence me, but all you’ve done is amplify the signal.

I’m not writing this for sympathy.

I’m not writing this for justice.

I’m writing this to say:

You failed.

I am still here.

Still rising. Still building.

Still dangerous to everything you believe in or ever tried to control.

So if you're reading this—and we both know you are—let this serve as a permanent marker of your failure.

I see you. I always have.

You’re not a villain in my story.
You’re not even the antagonist.
You’re background noise.

And I’ve stopped listening, just thought you should know.

Daphne A. Minks
Twisted Reels Productions
Founder | CEO | Thriving Individual