College Drop-off Did Not Go How I Imagined

This is a picture of my son’s room when I dropped him off at college.

Where is his bed? 😂

Move-in day did not go the way I expected, and I started spiraling:

Where is he going to sleep?
What kind of mother leaves her child without a bed?
What will the other moms think of me?

I felt like things were out of control. 

But my son didn’t.

Here is what he was thinking:

I’m so pumped to be back at college.
I don’t care when the mattress comes.
I can sleep anywhere!

Hmm. Looks like I was the one who felt uncomfortable.
The challenge was for me to look at this differently.

Really, nothing had gone wrong.

He didn’t think a bed arriving late was a problem.
He learned that not all things in life happen instantly.
He figured out where to sleep.
He managed his classes with the bed delivery time.
He learned how to assemble a bed without me.

After caring for our babies for so many years, it’s not easy to transition into an adult relationship.

But it’s possible when you look through a different lens.

When you focus on what you want for them in the future versus making things perfect right now. 

Here’s what you don’t see in this picture:

We had fun shopping together at Target. 
We put the rest of his room together. Peacefully. 
He proudly introduced me to his friends. 
He shared what happened on arrival night. 
Our goodbye was heartfelt.

For me, I want to build a lasting connection so that he wants to share what’s going on in his life.

I don’t want to give that up for a well-made bed.
Do you?

♥️ Jeanine

P.S. Struggling to feel close to your teen? Let’s talk.