An open letter to all mothers from Kenza, founder of Talm

To all mums 

Initially, this letter was supposed to be about my relationship with beauty and well-being, and maybe even some of my tips and routines... but I've been (really) thinking about it for several weeks now, without finding an interesting or relevant angle. And finally, after considering it for so long, I thought of you and I realised that instead of talking about myself, I wanted to talk to you. 

You, the mums, the ones who've been mothers for a long time or two minutes, the expectant and pregnant ones, the ones who can't take it any more or who are trying desperately, the ones who were mums for just a few days before everything came to a sudden halt. Those who have encountered bereavement, illness or the unexpected along the way. I want to write to you. You, the brave, the tired, the beautiful, the acne-ridden and the radiant, the lonely and the surrounded, the full bellies, the empty bellies, the sagging breasts, the full of milk, the lion's hair and the very sparse. This letter is for you. 

So for the last 2 and a half years, you and I have been talking a lot, almost daily in fact: in the evenings, at weekends, on public holidays, on the way home from an evening out or during your lunch breaks... First of all, to answer your questions, your ‘In what order do I use my routine?’ and your ‘What works to prevent stretch marks?’ or ‘Is it OK to apply my oil before breastfeeding?’ or ‘How many months of the hair treatment can I follow, it works well on me’.

From functional questions, we quickly moved on to more existential ones: on certain mornings, you shared with me the little lines that had finally appeared: “I'm telling you, I haven't announced it yet, but this is it, I'm pregnant at last” or your sorrows “I was pregnant yesterday, but tonight I’m not”, you sent me photos of your babies at the maternity ward, you thanked me even though I did nothing at all, we laughed, we cried, we hoped, together.

Photo credits: Charlotte Leonardi