Brava, Pima.
Never been prouder than when my oldest ran back to his company after the 5 min goodbye on R-Day. He paused after about 10 steps, turned around and said, "I've got this, mom." Boo hoo time for mom...but only after he was far enough away to not hear me. Pride, fear of the unknown, joy, sadness...all in almost equal measure. Today I look back on that moment, and I realize it truly was the end of his childhood, but not the end of my parenting really. I just transitioned (was promoted!) from teacher, to mentor. Now, 2 years out of USCGA, I can truly say I've been promoted again...to friend. I'll never stop being his mom, but adding these new job titles to my resume has been such a wonderful progression.
Now we prepare to send youngest to USAFA, and I'm feeling pretty good about managing the emotions that will smack me in the face in about 80 days. It's all about letting go of yesterday, when a bandaid and a hug from mom could fix almost every problem, and embracing tomorrow and all the ups and downs to follow. Taking that first step in letting go is tough--kinda like stepping off the high dive. Scary and fun and not nearly as bad in hindsight. That's how I am approaching this last little chickadee's exit from the nest. He will be fine and so will we. Eventually.