Dear Katie,

As you read this letter you will be driving off Whidbey Island, beginning a road trip that will take you to a new home, job, and community. I will stand in the driveway with your dad and brother to see you off. I’ll harness the strength of heaven to wave with enthusiasm before returning to the kitchen table, to sip my coffee and cry while your dad performs a happy dance, smack dab in the middle of the kitchen.

First, he’ll entice a smile out of me with an idea I honestly value and treasure: in a matter of weeks, when your brother heads to college, it will once again be Dad and Me Against the World. We started this grand adventure 29 years ago and now that the daily child rearing is done, it’s once again OUR time — to refocus on each other and create new adventures and dreams for ourselves.

I’ll promise to join him in the dance. But first, I must cry, just a little.

Next, after pouring me a second cup of brewed French Roast, your dad will remind me that this is how we have raised you: to be a daughter filled with enthusiasm for life; to take risks; and to build confidence and hope, faith and vision into a life you fashion for yourself. Remember what I have always said to you? I’ll not choose your career, hairstyle or spouse. Those are matters for you to decide, and you are doing just that.

I’ve kept that promise. But now that you are beginning to make adult choices, it’s necessary that I make profound changes in my life, as well. I’ll have to trust that the faith and values I passed on to you will root and grow in your burgeoning new life. I’ll have to find satisfaction, not in the daily interactions I am so used to enjoying, but in watching your life unfold from a distance.

And I’ll change the way I parent you. I’ll always be your mom, but I’ll no longer take the lead. Instead, I’ll share my views when you ask. I’ll also release that deep sense of responsibility I’ve felt for you all these years. I gift you with that freedom. I trust you.

At the same time, I renew a couple of promises I’ve made throughout your childhood. You can depend on me. I’ll bind you to my heart and think of you daily. I’ll keep you and all that you hold dear in my prayers without fail. You can call, text, email or visit anytime, any day. I’ll never be too busy for you.

While your dad and I will eventually do some remodeling here at the house, we will keep your childhood home intact. It will always be your safe place to land, if you want it to be. We will also continue to build on our marriage and the love we have for each other so you can trust the idea that people can meet in their youth and enjoy love and complete commitment for a lifetime. Love can endure forever. Believe it.

I close with this ancient blessing, written in the book of Numbers:

I pray that the LORD

will bless and protect you,

and that he will show you mercy and kindness.

May the LORD be good to you

and give you peace.

I love you. Safe travels, darling Katie.

Mom