An Open Letter to Monica Lewinsky.
Dear Monica Lewinsky,
I want to start this by saying I was very young when The Thing happened, and so I remember seeing you on TV and thinking, ‘Why are they calling her a girl? She looks so old!’ I am formally and officially apologizing for young ignorant me thinking you were anything but a child. Seriously. I am so sorry, Monica. Please forgive me.
Now, with that out of the way, let’s get down to it. I think we all know what has to be said here… You, dear Monica, are absolutely, horrendously, tragically, unforgivably HILARIOUS. You’re ability to take one of the biggest White House scandals of the last 30 years and own your part while still speaking your truth, and with the level of humor and earnestness that you do is truly awe-inspiring. You flip trolls on their heads, and can snarkily retort the jerks on Twitter in a way that I believe is an art form. Honestly, teach a class, please?
I envy how confident you seem to always be, and how gracefully you carry yourself. You feel authentic and humble and self-assured all at the same time, and I hope our present culture can teach girls to be as true to themselves using you as an example the way the culture of all those years ago used you against my generation to belittle us.
You are the very example of taking back your narrative. You may not always feel that way, and you surely have days when it all still feels overwhelming and scary, but Monica, I hope you understand what a legend and icon you are. And to do it all with that sense of humor and THAT SENSE OF STYLE? GIRL. Yes. We stan.
Wishing you the respect you deserve,
Rebecca Timberlake