My experience has been very different. Similar in that I do cry every single solitary time my daughter leaves to go back to school. Just like you it’s brief and I do need to be alone. That’s the ritual that I have with myself.
It’s some sort of meditative cleansing and it does work for me. It doesn’t make my sadness go away, but it’s a closing of a chapter if you will.
Our children’s lives, just like our own, are novels. They are the lead character. There will be many chapters. I will be in some of them, but mostly just the early ones. That’s my role. Hopefully I am one of the most meaningful relationships and supportive roles in her novel. But if I’m not, so be it. It’s her book.
At the point when they leave to go to college, their book is just getting good.
I have to remind myself that I am confident and proud of the role that I have played and I know that if she doesn’t go back to school her book is going to be really boring. In order for her to bloom and grow and show the world all that she has to offer, which is a tremendous amount, she needs to go back to school right now. And as a good parent, I support that with a very big smile on my face and “our ritual” before she goes back to school, is that we kind of shop for the things that she needs together, have some lunch and review the classes she’s about to begin and the fun things she might do with her friends.
I always drive her to the airport. We talk on the way there about what the semester will bring and get excited together for all she’s about to embark upon. Our goodbye is swift because we already did what we needed to do before we got in the car to go.
She’s really good at staying in contact with me, so that helps.
Everyone’s experience is going to be different, I suppose. I try to remember my role in her book and how I also need my book to continue being a bestseller. 😃
The fact that you’re reading this (original article) means that you are parent who cares tremendously about your student and that makes you everything that they need to succeed. Congratulations. You’re doing everything right.