Reply To: Starting a New Chapter

[DeeAnn Hopings]

There is a parallel for me regarding change and a sense of loss. In 1996 my daughter graduated from college and I moved her to DC to start her first job. After she found an apartment, we unloaded the truck I had at the time and I drove back to New York State. Early in the drive I realized that things had profoundly changed and that there was no turning back. It saddened me, deeply, but it is the way of things I told myself. For a time it was difficult to drive with tears in my eyes. I reminded myself that she was starting a great and new adventure and that my role had shifted from guidance to support at a distance. It took a while for me to get comfortable with that and eventually I did. While the important thing is to look forward, sometimes it helps to look back and be reminded of where we have been…