http://www.greatmombook.com/off-to-college-80.html by Chicken Soup for the Soul contributor Maria Rodgers O'Rourke Fri, 01 Oct 2010 18:11:14 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 http://www.greatmombook.com/off-to-college-80.html/comment-page-1#comment-193 Maria Kight Mon, 31 Aug 2009 22:36:52 +0000 http://www.greatmombook.com/?p=80#comment-193 It's been ten years since my daughter left for the Univ. of Miami in Coral Gables FL. We helped her pack up my old car with a small dorm fridge, our old microwave, new sheets and bedding for her dorm room etc. She would be driving to Miami by herself-her choice. We respected her wishes. We saw her off and I held it together till she turned the corner and was out of sight. Tears flowed freely and I had several bouts of sadness during the next few days. I hung around the phone and awaited her call telling us where she was spending the night. She kept her promise and called upon her arrival. My daughter has always been very independent but I noticed she called home frequently the first few weeks. Sometimes it seemed she was making an excuse to call. That was fine, I think she needed to hear my voice and I truly needed to hear hers yet neither of us said "I miss you". I couldn't wait for Winter break. She arrived home and I can honestly say I was happy to see her but just as happy to see her return to school. Although she came home for summer and during breaks, she's never lived with us again. It's been 10 years and we still are in touch almost daily. She's grown into a self sufficient woman and I'm glad I was able to let go and allow her the space to become a responsible adult. Letting go is probably one of the hardest things a mother has to do. Good luck to all of you going through it. :-) It’s been ten years since my daughter left for the Univ. of Miami in Coral Gables FL. We helped her pack up my old car with a small dorm fridge, our old microwave, new sheets and bedding for her dorm room etc. She would be driving to Miami by herself-her choice. We respected her wishes. We saw her off and I held it together till she turned the corner and was out of sight. Tears flowed freely and I had several bouts of sadness during the next few days. I hung around the phone and awaited her call telling us where she was spending the night. She kept her promise and called upon her arrival.
My daughter has always been very independent but I noticed she called home frequently the first few weeks. Sometimes it seemed she was making an excuse to call. That was fine, I think she needed to hear my voice and I truly needed to hear hers yet neither of us said “I miss you”.
I couldn’t wait for Winter break. She arrived home and I can honestly say I was happy to see her but just as happy to see her return to school. Although she came home for summer and during breaks, she’s never lived with us again. It’s been 10 years and we still are in touch almost daily. She’s grown into a self sufficient woman and I’m glad I was able to let go and allow her the space to become a responsible adult.
Letting go is probably one of the hardest things a mother has to do. Good luck to all of you going through it.

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