2,000 Miles

In the past two weeks, we have traveled nearly 2,000 miles.  From Boston to Maryland, back to Boston, to Rochester, to Quebec, and back to Boston yet again.

Along the way, we enjoyed family time, pretended to be pirates, cried as our firstborn left the nest for his first semester at College, hiked, rode horses, and watched cars race, and watched the miles roll beneath our tires.

We are home now.  Some things are familiar here; the dogs happy to see us, our rooms waiting just as we left them, scary food to throw out from the fridge.  Some things utterly strange: one son not living with us, his room quiet, his bed neatly made.  He will always be part of our world, but there will be parts of his world we will not share.

That is a scary and bittersweet place for a parent to be.

Yet I know this is as it should be.

It doesn't mean I wouldn't drive every one of those 2,000 miles again if he needed me to.