22 : Leaving the Proverbial Nest - Something Old

Flying Free

The time has finally come for Miss 22 to leave the proverbial nest and fly off to England to live and work for the next five years. We all face that time in our lives when we have the urge to leave home, one way or another, but there are the select few of us that have an urge to go as far away as possible. My daughter had that urge and her dreams of becoming a fashion journalist meant staying home was not going to be an option. She has bided her time, saved her money and organised as much as she could so she could give it a go. The time had arrived for her to take that final plunge and go for it. There are no guarantees for success, no way to know how it will all turn out, but what she does know is that if she doesn't give it a go then she will never find out.

The human species would never have populated all parts of the world if we weren't born with the urge to know more, to seek out new futures for ourselves and to travel. Even though in this current internet age we are actually more connected with the world than ever before, and it is not such an unknown and frightening place. It still is a huge thing to just up and leave everything and everyone behind and start over. It takes a certain kind of courage to risk it all and even a little brashness. But if we all stayed home safely tucked in our homes, living the same mundane lives over and over then there would be no such thing as progress. Progress needs forward thinking people who are prepared to risk it all and give new things a go; a steep learning curve to success.

I'm not sure why but when Miss 22 was a little 3 year old girl, with the world still in front of her, I had a sudden flash forward into her future. I pictured this tiny little girl all grown up and working as a journalist. I had a vision of myself opening my front door to find her standing there with a short blonde bob hair cut and grinning from ear to ear, somehow I just knew she was a journalist. This is an image I have always remembered and now, 19 years later, she is actually heading off to live out exactly that dream. However, instead of having a short bob hair cut and knocking on my door, she was heading off to the airport dressed stylishly with her medium length brown hair ready to embark on her new journalism career.

Maybe my vision of her was an insight into her future, I don't know.  What I do know was that vision was accompanied by a very strong sense of knowing that helped me realise all those years ago that everything would be alright. That this child was destined for greatness somehow and she would eventually make all her dreams come true. It is a very long road to success and for her it is only the beginning; but this great leap is a step forward in the right direction to follow the path she has set for herself.

... until we meet again.