What's your comfort food?
In 2002, my son, Tray and his wife,
Kristen relocated to the Washington DC area. While I was so proud of him
for the great job he had landed, it broke my heart to think that they were
going to be living so far away. My daughters were still in the area
(thankfully) and I knew that all three of my children had done exactly what I
wanted - they had all grown into independent adults and didn't need to be
mothered, nor did their mother need to be "taken care of".
Everything was right on track.
I might have known that in my head, but I was
having a hard time getting my heart in line.
Moving day arrived and Tray chose
to meet me at my parents' home for our goodbyes.
I thought my heart would break as I
watched Tray's truck pull out of the driveway. I walked into
the house and met my daddy coming out of their kitchen. He held a pot in
one hand and a bag in the other. I'll never forget his words -
"How about a little bowl of
grits?"
That was 19 years ago.
Today Tray and Kristen left their eldest child in the big bad world of Gainesville. She's about to start her freshman year.
He texted his sisters and me that this was a time of such mixed emotions. A later text said, "we will leave for Jacksonville soon - minus one".
Renee texted him that it's hard - no way to lighten that. She knows because her eldest child is a senior at Cedarville University in Ohio and the goodbyes are still difficult. She also knows because her youngest will be delivered to Samford University next week.
The most recent text says "Super excited; super proud, really sad".
And as I read it, I was reminded of my daddy's words -
"How bout a little bowl of grits?"
May your life be filled with enough Sunshine
