Jenny

She worked long hours in Manhattan’s Garment District, sewing clothes that would carry someone else’s name.

She came to English class every morning, quietly taking notes, determined to improve.

Her teacher often admired her outfits—a cute dress, a stylish blouse.

Each time, she’d smile and say, “I made it myself.”

One day, she walked into class with something different:

A hand-sewn blouse, wrapped carefully in tissue paper.

“For you,” she said, offering it to her teacher. A gift. A thank-you.

Decades later, the teacher still thinks about her.

Would she have had the same opportunities as the big-name designers who grew up in New York?
Would she have ever seen her designs walk a runway at Fashion Week?

Probably not.

But was she any less talented?

Not for a second.