Today

Today is the first day Luke is staying at school for lunch and a little bit after for afternoon class.

Today is another cut on that emotional umbilical cord that ties me to my baby.

I remember all these milestones of letting go and releasing my child to more and more independency:

When Luke was weaned at 10 months (unintentionally, which led to lots of tears for both of us).

When he started to walk, running away from me and sometimes into my open, waiting arms.

When he started school for two days a week, then five (this one was hard).

And now Madison and I have to eat lunch without his constant chattering.

When I dropped him off at school and we kissed goodbye, I cried as I watched his little bouncy body skipped to put away his school supplies in his cubby hole.

I know, he’s only lunching at school, but watching him responsibly putting away his books and supplies, respectfully following his teachers’ instruction, and happily joining in with his band of friends at the playground– I know in my heart that my baby has grown up some more. And I have to let go some more.

This is one of the hard lessons to learn as a parent – to love your children and raise them well is to let them go. Let them navigate their way in the world and chart their own course in their life journeys.

And when the last bit of the umbilical cord is cut with our blessing, they will walk, run, and soar.

It’s a sad and beautiful thing.