My situation is a little different in being an empty nester. My kids will never go to college because they learn differently and college isn’t a match. Sometimes, I wish that were different, especially when I hear the news, see parents out and about with their kids, or go back and remember the first dreams of my being a mother, the things we would do and they might become. Different would help when I feel hurt by them or exhausted or alone.
I have been taught about reality and finding ways to take care of me and them. I love them more than I imagined. They taught me that, too. We are like a city in a city with lights on and off and new people meandering around wondering what’s around the corner.
I am strong. I am sad. I am their mother. They won’t be leaving home, nor will I. Still, my role as mommy changes, because they grow a year older, as do their hormones. I left the little ones who hold my hands, just like you. I look up to the taller ones and up and up.
Paula
Natalie Caine, M.A. natalie@lifeintransition.org
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