We share the inspiring speech by author Andreia Leite, read at the launch of her book “Para que servem as mães?”.

“It is with enormous joy and a heart full of emotion that I am here today to share with you a little piece of my soul, expressed in the pages of this book.
When they asked me where I wanted to present the book, I only saw myself in this place (Colegio das Caldinhas)…
I know I could have done it in many other places, but, since this book is about love, and love is what I feel in relation to this castle that saw me grow up, it could only be here.

Entering here is entering home.
It’s feeling like I’m in a safe place. It’s entering a place that, although different, on a visual level, is the same in terms of emotions… A place that has known my smile and look during the years I’ve been here.
It’s going back to the place that gave me wings so I could BE AND BE WHERE I AM NOW. Only those who have walked these corridors know and feel what I mean.

25 years ago I didn’t dream that I would be here today! I never liked being the center of attention… But today the stage is mine, because I have in my hands a dream that started small and quickly became much bigger than me.

Precisely a year ago, at Isabel’s invitation, I went to the launch of Manuel Andrade’s book… I didn’t know Manuel. I didn’t even know what Idioteque was, what it was dedicated to, and if I had been told that day that I would be here today, exactly one year later, presenting a book of mine, with Manuel and Idioteque, I would probably laugh and say that the world was crazy, but the truth is that I really am… Life knows what it does and tries to put the right people in the right places when it has to be… And I can only be very grateful for that! Manuel saw something in this book that I hadn’t seen yet….

When I started writing it, it wasn’t what you can read today… The story wasn’t quite like this, but I wanted to leave something for my children. Keep it in a drawer so that one day, when I was no longer here, they would have something of mine, tangible that they could read and say “Mother wrote it”. But life happened and when my mother got sick, I realized that we, mothers, are not eternal after all. Not that I didn’t already know it, but it’s only when it comes to us that it really sinks in, and that’s when I turned the text around and it became what it is in these pages. This book is the I love you that I was never able to say to my mother. I demonstrated it many times, I know, but if there is something that my generation and those before it have, it is a great difficulty in verbalizing love to their parents, and I know that in this I failed them both greatly.

She didn’t know I was writing it. I don’t even know if she knew I liked writing that much. While she was sick I took a lot of breaks from the book because it was difficult to admit that I was going to lose her and it was after that that I finished it.
I made him a promise to take it out of the drawer, far from imagining that would be possible.

But Manuel saw in these pages the love I had for him and understood exactly what, although it wasn’t written there, I needed to say. This book is not just a story; It is an extension of what I believe, what I dream and what I feel. Every word was chosen carefully, and was shaped with the hope of creating a special bond between whoever reads it and this world that came to life in my head.

No, this book is not meant to distort parents and boast about Mothers… This book is just the way I found so that my children, yours and us, mothers, never forget that the best place in the world, the place safer, it will always be the Mother’s lap. The bond that unites us is unbreakable. It is not the umbilical cord that, when cut, separates us… Being a mother, in any form, is being a safe haven and the guarantee of unshakable love.

And if I’m here today, I owe it to mine.
However, I know I need to thank: first of all, Manuel and Idioteque for helping me accomplish all of this. To Érica, for realizing, without having to say almost anything, exactly what I wanted from the illustration. To Professor Vítor Fernandes, who with the greatest affection in the world agreed to my request to present it. I know you’re used to presenting great literary works, but we’ll get there, professor, we’ll get there… (laughs)

To my family, who was always there, especially my husband, who was that amazing husband who rolled up his sleeves when I started to panic, looked me in the eyes and said “don’t even think about giving up now, I won’t let you! ” To Carina, who found out about the existence of this book while pulling a tooth and was immediately available for whatever I needed and who was tireless in helping me get here. And to all those who joined Rúben and her to make this happen.

To my friends, who experienced this with true friendship. Who deal with my insecurities every day. Who never let go of my hand, who never shy away from telling me the truth, even if it hurts, and who celebrated this as much or more than I did. To Sílvia, who is the light in my life and who whenever I asked her how to deal with what I was feeling, she told me “write, don’t stop writing… Keep saying what you need to say”. It is often my life jacket and I owe a lot of my mental health to it.

I would like to thank my godson, Emanuel Dias, for being here with me today and making this moment even more special. I have a mother’s love for him and I know he knows that.
I can’t help but thank Jorge Coutinho, my mentor. Jorge appeared in my life in March of this year, when I was already having an internal struggle between whether or not I would go in relation to this book and he always pushed me forward, even from a distance, and when I went into panic mode, he said- me: “Believe me, put your foot down and God will give you ground”… It was often the voice I needed to hear to trust that I would succeed. He was the one who gave me the key tools to make me realize that the place I am in does not define me and that the sun can and should also shine for me.
Seeing you all here today is really a reason for happiness for me. Not only for receiving this book of mine with so much affection, but for realizing that, when we walk together, we reach our destination stronger and better. Each of you will have a unique interpretation of these words, and that is what makes this moment so special.

I want to thank each and every one of you for being part of this journey, for embarking on this universe that I created, and for allowing my words to find a place in your hearts. I hope this story engages you, inspires you and, in some way, forms part of your memories.
I know that I am an eternal dreamer… That at 39 years old I still haven’t stopped dreaming. I only know how to live like this. Dreaming helps me move forward and achieve goals.
I was once told that “if your dreams don’t scare you, they’re not too big”! There are a lot of dreams in me to achieve. Are you scared? A lot, but there it is… I’m really scared, because once again I know that I’ll never go alone!!!

Never stop dreaming. Never allow anyone to tell you that you can’t do it or that you aren’t capable. Never let them pull you down. Don’t accept criticism from those who have never built anything. Always believe that you are capable of being and doing whatever you want.
I don’t know what the future holds for me, but it’s good that Professor Vítor and Manuel are staying close, because now that I’ve started it will be difficult to make me stop writing.

A kiss to everyone. Thank you for coming. I hope you feel on each page all the love and affection I wanted to convey.
Never stop telling your loved ones that you love them. Say it often and every day. But more than saying, show, apply the love and gratitude you have for them, daily.

Love generates love and that’s the end of it!!

Mom, I did it… Promise fulfilled

Thanks”