Yesterday I was struggling to think about what I might write for this post. I put a few words down, deleted them and then put a few more words down and then deleted them and gave up and carried on with my day!
This morning though whilst having my coffee I picked up the phone to find the big man had texted, a picture, proof that he’d started his packing. The sign that his first year at university had come to an end. There’d been a big build up to this point, the end of exams a couple of weeks ago allowing him to let his hair down and with folk gradually leaving for home he was starting to feel a little melancholy.
Offering some fatherly advice back I texted back. Looking forward to having you home. It’s come round so quick. Make the most of your day today, but don’t be sad 🙂 Just enjoy the calm, the peace, reflect and success of completing your first year! What an achievement! See you tomorrow.
Going to be odd being back to the four of us, I’d like to say I’d got the portion control right on the cooking front whilst he’s been away. I haven’t, so it will be good for the waste line to have the fourth mouth to hoover the extras up. I have though, got used to the milk not disappearing and cereal not disappearing so quickly. You think a plague of locusts has attacked the Muesli when he visits…I’m now thinking we should have got more in.
My youngest son finishes his first set of exams for this Monday, and as the resident IT manager in the house it’s been my job to go through the computing science past papers. I’m amazed at the level and how relevant it is to the day job. I don’t remember my equivalent exam back in the day and certainly don’t remember my dad sitting beside me as we tackled the past papers. It’s been a slog but we’ve got through it.
So although it’s the end of May…it feels like the start of something new, the boys both coming to an end of their academic years and the idea of a break sounds nice.
And the red buses? It’s random I know. they were just so cheery seeing them just round the corner near the church today. Big old red London buses in Edinburgh. I had to stop and take a picture! Happy weekend folks.
The #WeekendCoffeeShare is an informal weekly link-up hosted by Natalie the Explorer that serves as weekly heart beat and sort of of a mind-dump. Helps me reflect on my week, with a list of achievements, thoughts and rambles normally whilst drinking a beverage probably listening to music.
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Scribble and Scran 
Congratulations to your son completing his first college year! I can imagine it’s a special feeling, and to have everyone home too.
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Thanks Susanne, great to have him home. The house has new tunes being played in it already….Jazz no less. I think he’s breaking us in slowly!
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Love those old red buses – they really are cheery. Congrats on getting to the end of another academic year. Our daughter moved out last January – just a few hours north of us. She comes home (fairly) regularly, but every time she does we have to readjust portions etc (how one more mouth can make such a difference) and every time she goes back we miss her like it was the first time all over again.
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Know exactly what you mean about the first time over. His brother also ends up pieces.
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What a great idea to have the red London buses for a special occasion. Congrats to your two sons on completing a school year and to you for ‘surviving’ the changes and the computing science reviews 🙂 Have a wonderful summer with your sons at home. Thank you for your weekend coffee share.
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Thanks Natalie. Going to be a nice couple of months.
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Wonder what the buses were for? I know what you mean about preparing meals. When my step son moved back to Denmark there were suddenly lots of leftovers!
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I saw them later on, wedding transportation.
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Aha! The ribbons on the front should have been the clue.
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Congratulations on your son completing his first year in college!
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Thanks Julie
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Hi Alex,
It’s now Monday morning here, and it’s a US holiday so I have an easy day to catch up on the weekend coffee shares before continuing my own writing.
We have our own wave of nostalgia unfolding regarding our kids as both our sons are now out of the house, one: on a traditional trajectory of having collected: a wife; his undergraduate degree and their first home which they moved into last month – in a different state, one timezone and minimum of a two day drive away.
Our second is one, almost impossible class to get into, away from finishing his undergraduate work. He too has left the nest and is enjoying the freedom of being almost 10 hours drive away.
Mom misses them all (including our still new DIL) terribly as do I but, having been there myself, I understand the mindset of being out on my own and loving the challenge of making a life at my own pace.
We still have a daughter at home, but she’s well done with her undergrad work and has been trying to get into medical school as becoming a doctor is all she’s wanted to do since she understood the question of, ‘what do you want to be when you grow up?’ That step has been painful and she’s grappled with it all through the covid years. She’s still determined, but exhausted by it all.
All that to say, we still have one of three in the house. It’s not enough, but it all feels like life unfolding under some kind of control. We know that we can’t keep them so close forever and that if we’ve done our jobs right – they should be independent and engaging whatever their own lives are going to be.
sigh.
I liked your photo of the big red bus and think it a fitting image to illustrate how our children must keep moving on. It’s as it should be. Our missing them is too. . .
Enjoy the moments while you have them in sight. Make some memories and congratulate yourselves on a job well done – even if the results leave you a tad lonely.
Warmest regards,
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Thank you for your wise words Gary. It all seems to go by in a heart beat. I think the mom(s) have it bad in terms of boys leaving home, and with the distances you are talking about man that would be hard. I’m lucky in terms of distance, an hour away door to door. Still a feeling of separation but close enough to bridge the gap of loneliness where required.
So a good two months lies ahead of us, and I will definitely take your advice and make those memories.
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Sounds like that was great advice to give your son. Enjoyed your update.
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