I think for most parents, separation from their young children for any length of time can lead to a mountain of anxiety and worry and uneasiness and fear. I would guess that most of us with children have had one or more periods of extended time apart from them. It could be due to a business trip, summer camp, divorce, or any number of other things. For me, this has been a fairly common occurrence over the years, mostly due to work-related travel. Once I remember being on travel for a two-week stretch when my daughter was just a few months old. It really tore at my heart to leave her. When I returned it seemed that she had changed so much. It felt like I had missed out on something unique and precious that would never come around again. I decided at that time to be very careful about travel as a result of that, only going when absolutely necessary for my career.Now I am facing another of those points in our journey together. However, this time it is not me who is going away. Today, my daughter is traveling to visit some relatives in Spain. We will be apart for more than two weeks. When I see her again, the start of the school year will be just around the corner and our summer will be over. For many reasons, this stretch just ahead of me will be a difficult one to deal with productively and positively. I will deeply miss her and our special time together. I just hope that the echo of her laughter in our house will resound and sustain me until she returns home.
