OK … now this is plain stupid

I have always been a fairly relaxed mum. First day of school, I stood at the classroom door and waved, not a tear in sight. I have watched this beautiful young woman grow and grow, becoming confident and self assured. I have clashed heads with her, I have held her when she was hurt, I have shook my head in absolute stunned confusion as she applied her incomprehensible logic to life. I have struggled to teach her to cook when she doesn’t want to learn. I have unconsciously tried to mould her into a girly girl, only to have my attempts fail …… she did not like dancing, will not wear frills, takes absolutely no care of her nails and wears makeup under extreme sufferance. And all in all, I have coasted through this parenting stage, looking (mostly) confident and happy.

So today, I dropped her off in the university grounds, for the start of her orientation week. There was no backward looks, no worry or concern, absolutely no fear of the unknown ….. In that moment it hit me …… she’s not my baby anymore, she is an adult, and off on her own journey. I may not have cried on the first day of school ….. but I do now.