as i write this, sabin's landing in st. petersburg. yes, we did let her go in the end. if it had been just her, i would have easily said "no thanks," but her best friend, who turns 13 on thursday, was going as well, and that would have left her all alone on the trip with a bunch of kids from other schools who she didn't know. i just couldn't do that to them. and i felt completely better, delivering her to the airport at 4:30 this morning. she was so excited and so relaxed and confident as she made her way through airport security. the kid is a seasoned traveler, after all. she's going to be fine. i made her promise to take a million pictures.
i'll admit i listened to this in the car on the way home...
4 comments:
Noooo! Bad choice of song, did you have a little cry?
Glad you sent her off though, I've every faith it'll be fine and she'll have an amazing time. She's totally old enough (and well traveled enough as you say) to use her own brain even if/when the clown isn't.
Looking forward to hearing about her trip!
I dont think mothers, and in the best cases fathers too, are given enough credit for the huge amount of courage it takes to let go of our children. Thank god it is usually a gradual process, but it is one of the most difficult things that I have ever had to achieve. I have not always been very good at it. In my case it is complicated by the fact that my husband is not the father of my children and has never had children of his own, so he has no understanding of the kind of unconditional love that can exist between a parent and child (he never experienced that either). I think you should allow yourself to recognise and appreciate your bravery and the fact that you ade prepared to put Sabin's needs above your own, even when it goes against your instincts. It is hard, but it is worth itnin the long run. I've seen the fruits of that with my own, amazing, independent, loving sons.
My 11 year old is already planning to do an Canadian government sponsored exchange program in France for 8th graders in French or French immersion schools. It hurts already to imagine her 8 weeks away from me.
thank you all for the encouragement. she's texted and sent a photo of the view from her hotel. she's going to have an awesome time. i'm hopeful that the ungdomsskolen is just bad at dealing with parents, but is great at dealing with young people! but st. petersburg can't help but be a little bit magical. i say that and i'm even a moscow person. :-)
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