Youngest son is touring to the other side of the globe

[Ayu]

I know, this is no case of emergency. Rather it is a fortunate form of growing up.
Alas, when I saw him yesterday at the check-in to his flight to Australia, his mobile lurking out of the right pants pocket, his wallet halfway hanging insecurely out of the other pants pocket, him waving happily GoodBye, ("see you next year") - it dawned to me clearly that now I lost control and that this boy needs to be lucky.

May he be protected and may life teach him friendly and properly the right lessons. May he proceed further in growing to be a good person.

[narhwal90]

In June our 17yr old daughter is going away to work for the summer- I worked at the place many years ago so I know the good/bad/ugly. She makes better choices than I did at that age, so I'm hopeful, but apprehensive as well.

[Ayu]

Yes, our brainwashing mantra since their birth is "Takecare takecare takecare..." Difficult situation to let them really go.

[Giovanni]

It’s not always easy letting go. When my daughter left home to go university I found myself going to her room several evenings in a row just to look at her empty bed..

[Punya]

I know, this is no case of emergency. Rather it is a fortunate form of growing up.

...

May he be protected and may life teach him friendly and properly the right lessons. May he proceed further in growing to be a good person.

Yes, letting go is hard. I haven't entirely succeeded. But my youngest son's working holidays in several countries have cultivated a level of maturity and responsibility that has surprised me, especially after living in his older brother's shadow as a child and teenager. His current broad outlook is a real asset in the job market and, of course, in life. At least the electronic age allows a continued connection to travelling children through social media, etc that was not available to my parents, when I took an extended trip in my early 20s. They had to content themselves with the occasional postcard.

May your son have some wonderful experiences and many opportunities to grow.

[Konchog Thogme Jampa]

I remember catching a flight to Barcelona with some money saved so to travel for several months when I was 18 went all round Spain and went to Morocco

Best thing ever

Wish I'd travelled more at that age so much freedom

[Ayu]

Thank you, everybody, for your words. It's consoling somehow to see that I am not the only one who has a hard and strange time in adjusting to this new situation.
And yes, I remember how traveling really expanded my horizon.

He traveled 26 hours with three planes. I forgot how vast this planet is, because one can communicate with anybody anywhere whithin seconds.

Yes, letting go is hard....
At least the electronic age allows a continued connection to travelling children through social media, etc that was not available to my parents, when I took an extended trip in my early 20s. They had to content themselves with the occasional postcard.

Yes. Telephones were not always available or working and letters or postcards arrived months later.
But this easy access nowadays can be a hard challenge as well, because we overly protective parents are not supposed to use it too often.

May your son have some wonderful experiences and many opportunities to grow.

Thank you.