Letting go
Today, the boy took his drivers’ test.
He passed.
Let us not forget that this was once a small child who held my hand to cross streets. Let us remember that the boy was once dependent on us for everything; clean pants, nourishment, a safe place to sleep. Life flashes: taking him to daycare for the first time; the first day of school; the first time we let him spend the night at a friend’s; his first razor; his first date. In two years we’ll be getting him ready to go to college.
Once I was a young girl with a baby in my arms. Today I see gray hair in the mirror and hand over the keys to this boy, taller than I am by several inches, and stand still, watching him drive away.
With any luck, he’ll keep coming back.

June 30th, 2006 at 12:07 pm
Wow - congratulations, I think. I’m watching my own son grow up (too quickly), and can only imagine how I’ll feel when he’s ready to take the wheel.