Thinking of You, Senior Moms
This morning I was re-organizing my pots and pans cupboard (do we ever really take a day off??) when I came across something that made me think of you: a red Chuck E. Cheese whistle. It must have fallen out of the back of the "junk drawer," the one we fill with ink pens and sticky notes and replacement Christmas tree light bulbs that we never actually use. I don't know how long the whistle has been in this junk drawer, but it has been out of sight, probably shoved way to the back, for roughly 15 years! At some point, it got pushed back by items more recently placed in the junk drawer, and it fell to the cupboard below.
When I first saw it laying in the back behind the pans, I didn't recognize it. As I reached for it, I thought, "What is this?" Then I picked it up. In a few seconds, years of moments and memories came rushing in of when my girls were little. And it made me smile. Then I thought of you.
I know what you're thinking right now and how you're feeling. How did 18 years go by so fast? It seems like just yesterday you put your son or daughter on the school bus and sent them off to kindergarten! Now, here you are days away from their high school graduation and preparing to send them off to college or out into the workforce! "Have I loved her enough?" "Have I taught her all she needs to know to survive away from home, out on her own?" "Will he make friends?" "Will he fit in?" "When will I see her again?" All of these thoughts and fears are racing through your mind, and at the same time you're reading "you only have 940 Saturdays." Geeze. Doesn't that seem final and depressing.
So I wanted to share my feelings with you on this season of change with this child of yours, the one you've sheltered and poured your heart into for the past 17 to 18 years: It's going to be okay! You're going to be okay! Your child is going to do just fine. Better than fine, I promise! The fact of the matter is, they come home, and sometimes it's on a Saturday! The days of childhood will be replaced by getting to know your child as an adult. I know it's not the same, but in some ways, it's better. It's better in a way because you will watch as this child you have loved and cared for becomes an adult, doing adult things, making the big decisions and making their own way in their own life! It will make you so proud!
As two of my own daughters have graduated and are moving into adulthood, the times when we can all be together are my most treasured moments. It's a wonderful feeling getting a call from your adult child asking for your banana bread recipe or asking for advice on how to handle a difficult situation. And there is absolutely, hands down, nothing better than having all of them home under the same roof at the same time!
You see, Senior Mom, you will still be needed. And if we're being honest, isn't that really one of our fears during this season? Will they still need us? They will. And they do. They don't need us to tie their shoes or hold their little hand as they cross the street any longer. We've done those things. They will be reaching out to us in a different way, as they navigate their adult life. It's different. But it's just as wonderful.
Senior Mom, I wish you all the best this graduation season! Enjoy this time and make more memories! I hope one day if you come across a long since forgotten Chuck E. Cheese item in the back of your junk drawer, that it makes you smile as you recall, in mere seconds, years filled with joy and love and great times together!
Happy Mother's Day!
Paula
PS: If you're wondering what became of the whistle, I put it back in the junk drawer. It's in the front now. Right where I can see it when I reach for an ink pen.
