Empty Nesting.

Hi. I’m Marla. Gimme a Minute. I wanna talk to you about empty nesting.

Actually, I need to ask a few questions. We’re heading into the empty nesting phase of life..our youngest goes away to school in the fall.

I need to ask you who have forged this path ahead of me.

Will I have trouble sleeping worrying about whether or not my child is home safe in bed at a reasonable hour? Can I keep from being the homework police? Do I still need my Costco membership?

When can I turn that empty bedroom into a yoga room?

I’ve heard I need to wait until permanent employment is achieved, or the first rental agreement (other than student housing) is signed.

As a member of the generation referred to as helicopter parents, I understand we’ve raised boomerang kids.

I moved “home” with my parents in my 20’s, after a devastating collapse of a relationship. Giving in to my personal pain to allow someone else to do the laundry, grocery shopping, and cooking was therapeutic. I lasted for six months with this kind of tough love.

My mother, brilliant woman that she was, made my life unbearable…giving me the same restrictions and chore responsibilities as an adult, that I had as a high school junior. That’s not true. She just asked me to check in once in a while. But it felt like oppression.

Maybe that’s the answer.

I will do my best to keep from treating the returning prodigal child as such. I’ll put them in charge of the laundry.

I’m Marla, thanks for listening. See ya.