Kids Grow Up

I wrote this poem several months ago after a conversation with my oldest. This seems like the perfect time for sharing.

Parenting is a lifelong adventure. And though responsibilities change as time passes, some things never change. Like that struggle between worry and release.

The temptation to hold on too tight is strong. And even after successfully letting go, certain events bring me right back into the battle.

Currently, it is a concern for their safety as public school teachers and a working college student during this pandemic. They are all adults. They know how to take care of themselves. But I will always be their mom. ❤

No Longer a Kid

How are you today?
A simple text
Sent to my child
Nothing urgent
Or momentous
Mom checking in

My eyes well up
With tears before
The swoosh sound
Of the sending text
Has even faded
What? Why now?

A flood of memories
Instantly fills my mind
A million questions
Where did the years go?
Did I do enough to
Prepare you for life?

The phone rings
Jolting me back
To the present
Tears turn to smiles
Questions fade away
The world is okay

Hey Mom, thought
I’d call and talk
Instead of just texting

And so it goes when
You are the parent
Of adult children
A simple thought
Becomes a rapid
Onslaught of emotions

A myriad of questions
And concerns
Instantly erased by
The sound of a voice-
My kid who is
No longer a kid

13 thoughts on “Kids Grow Up

  1. Oh my gosh… I am so close to this and am starting to realize how short lived it all is. But it feels like forever while they are home, then forever ends and one day they leave. 😢
    I’m bawling with you 😭

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Dear Piano Girl,

      I would also like to echo Beck’s sentiment. What a touching poem you have written! Tears are welling in my eyes as I read it.

      Life is short and time flies. Children grow up and leave, and so do our parents as they eventually pass away, leaving only memories and mementos.

      Liked by 2 people

  2. I have three adult children , on of whose birthday is today, and I sometimes wonder if I have done enough to prepare them for the realities of life and then one of them phones, we have a long, warm conversation and the anxieties dissipate

    Liked by 2 people

  3. Ron. Lavalette

    A fine write, most (all?) can relate to, even this non-parent old guy up on the Canadian border. I’d be a wreck worrying about the kids I created, if I’d created any.
    (Some folks refer to me as “childless” but especially now and during other similarly trying times I prefer to think of myself as “child-free”)
    .
    Still, though, I love My Beloved Sandra’s (fully adult) children, and am grateful that they (apparently) give a damn about me as well.

    Nice work, Piano Girl. Play on!

    Liked by 2 people

  4. this is so true! people often forget that time is passing and their kids are grown-ups now! it’s really crazy to see how fast time is passing without noticing! thanks for this post🥰

    Follow @everythingtips for tips and recommendations if interested! It would mean a lot to me!🥺❤️

    Liked by 1 person

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