*As previously published on Hybrid Mom
As the end of the summer has come, so have some big transitions. Friends of my youngest son (17) are headed off to college. His very best friend his entire life is also named Matthew and is the son of one of my closest friends. He is a year older and when I found out I was having a boy, I told my friend that I wanted to name my son Matthew too. I said, “It’s not like they will be friends.” Well they have been as close as brothers and today he came to say good-bye. They hugged and promised to video chat (the new coolest thing ever). I have loved this boy like a son and I was very choked up to send him off. For his graduation I had a silver pendent made with his initials engraved and he says he never takes it off. I feel like he is taking a bit of us with him. Hopefully he will feel our love and support.
I know many of you have or will arrive at this junction. My last child just started his senior year in high school …sort of the beginning of the end, as we know it. It is crazy how when you have small children and you are running around like an insane person everyone tells you how quickly it all goes. Unfortunately there is no way to really comprehend that until you get there yourself and find out that everyone was right. We went to a potluck with the people on our street last weekend and I think my husband and I were most likely thought of as ‚that older couple‛… trippy…
Luckily, I suppose, those teenagers drive you crazy and stress you out enough so you are ready to send them off when the time comes. It’s like pregnancy. When you first find out, you think OMG what will I do or you are thrilled to be pregnant and can’t imagine not loving every second of it. By the time you hit 9 months you have had enough and you just want the baby out. Same goes for teens. You would be hard pressed to send off your sweet 12 year old. I feel like I will be ready by this time next year, but I am going to try and soak up as many moments as I can. I do know (from experience) when you send your kids off to college you are so filled with hope, love and pride that it helps with the loss.
So as cliché as it is to say, time does go by so fast, so soak up the moments. That way, when it is time for the big transitions in your family, you will have a stockpile of great memories to hold onto.