My only daughter is leaving for her 1st year of college…
By Kim Luxoro
Tonight when you were at work, Taylor, I walked by your bedroom. From the hallway I saw the usual dirty (and quite possibly clean) clothes on the floor, the laundry baskets full of clean clothes, empty shopping bags from Victoria’s Secret, and that overflowing garbage can. Then I decided to walk in and lay on your un-made bed. When I put my head on your pillow I took a deep breath and I smelled your shampoo scent. I looked at all the things in your room and started to reminisce over the last 18 years when my gaze caught your teeny, tiny first pair of soccer cleats and my eyes filled with tears – how is my baby girl going to college? I just tied those cleats for your first game when you were four years old!
Oh how I will miss so many things about you, even the things that make me crazy:
The half-drank Starbucks cups
How you slam the bathroom door
The make-up everywhere
Smelling your perfume as it lingers in the house
How you can’t seem to throw the Q-tips into the garbage can so they surround it on the carpet
The half-burnt candles of all different scents
Oh that smile!
The sweet sound of your voice
The gentleness of your soul
Tripping over your 19 pairs of sneakers
Hearing you laugh and hearing you whine
Waiting up to hear your Jeep pull in the driveway
Our snuggling
Seeing those sparkling blue eyes that have been full of adventure since the 1st day I held you.
Taylor, Home is where I’ll always be. Your messy room will be here when you return. But you may find Mommy sleeping in your bed because just smelling your pillow will help me await your return.
Kim Luxoro is the Preschool Director at Zion Lutheran in Staten Island, NY. All three of her children attended this hidden gem in Westerleigh that has been a community treasure for 35 years. Miss Kim has a son entering his 5th year of college at Stevens Institute of Technology, a daughter entering her 3rd year of college at Concordia College, and a son beginning his sophomore year at Susan Wagner H.S. where Miss Kim is an alumna herself, “Class of ’88.” If you want to see the wonderful activities that go on at Zion, just check out their Facebook page: Zion Lutheran Preschool Staten Island. (Also see our own review! – Elephants Never)