And Then There Were Four

Early this morning, this little place here went from having five human occupants, to having just four.  Don't worry, no one died!

DS2 left for college.  Or, more accurately, left for a wilderness camping excursion with a group of incoming freshman of his chosen college.  I'll see him again in five days, when DH, DD1, DD2 and I make a nine hour trek to the uppermost reaches of Michigan to bring him the majority of his stuff for life in the dorm.  He really starts college life on Saturday, the official move-in day.

But this morning, he left us.  His room will remain unslept in from now until Thanksgiving break.  That makes a mother a little teary-eyed.

You'd think this would be easier on me, since I've all ready seen one son grow up and move away.  In some ways, it is.  DS1 left for the Marine Corps when he flew from the nest.  I did not get to hear his voice for the 13 weeks of boot camp; he only had time to send a letter once a week or so, and email was not on option for him during his transformation from teenaged civilian to lean, mean, fighting machine.

So, yes, this second child's leaving is a bit easier.  I have all ready heard his voice, telling me he had arrived safely, checked in, and was heading out for dinner.  And I will see him in five days.  He has a cell phone, and email in addition to the postal service. He's only 500 miles from home, yet still in the same state.  His  brother went to California, then to Florida, then to Virginia, then to South Carolina, overseas to Japan and Thailand.  500 miles is nothing.  That's practically right next door.

Even though I've done this before, watched a child take that big step into the adult world, and gone from a house of six to a home of five, somehow going to only four changes things more significantly.  Now we are a household of one male and three females.  (And that male is scared to death!!  LOL).  It has been nearly 18 years since we were a family of four, without knowing that we were soon going to be a family of five.  The last time we were a family of four, I was the outnumbered one; the only female in a house of males.

Maybe why this change is such a significant one is that we all know in just twelve short months we shall become a family of three when DD1 takes her turn at flying far from home.  DH and I are over half-way done with raising children.  We have reached the summit of that mountain, and are now peering over the precipice, knowing that once we step one more inch forward, our feet will fly down the slope and we will be at the bottom, the finish line, sooner than we could ever expect.

It's a big deal, becoming a family of 'only' four.