Letting Go, Staying Gone
Moms have a hard time letting go, don’t they. Some fathers do as well of course, but I don’t think it’s inaccurate to say that mothers have a harder time of it overall. But I can tell you this as a father. While it wasn’t hard to let them go off to college or adventures thousands of miles away, it is really hard to have them stay gone as the years roll on.
Add in a couple of grandkids who are far away and it makes it even harder. Granted I am talking from just one perspective but I don’t think that’s gender specific, I think it’s hard for both parents at that point.
Coming Home
Kids leave home all the time and no matter how hard a mother or father tries to get them to stay close, the truth is, if they really want and need to go, you want them to go. You want them to find their dreams even if it means that dream takes them away from you.
And here is the other truth. If you did make your home atmosphere pleasant, if it was filled with love, care, nurturing and freedom, then you child will want to come home. Maybe it won’t be a permanent return, but it will be a joyful and loving return nonetheless.
It’s the nature of kids to want to spread their wings. All you can do as a mother or father is give them a safe landing place when they return.
Drawing and commentary @ 2015 by Marty Coleman
Quote by Dorothy Parker, 1893-1967, American writer and wit