Good-bye again

Well, I am basically packed up and ready to go. Just a few toiletries to stash away in the corner of a suitcase. I must be feeling confident about not being overweight, because I haven't lugged my suitcases to the scales yet. Of course Tetsu took two suitcases home already...

Over my life I've said good-bye to my family many, many times. As a child my family and I would fly across the States to Indiana and spend summers with my grandparents and fly back to California a month later.

"Good-bye, good-bye. See you next year or maybe you'll come out at Christmas."

When I went away to college in Oregon it was a breezy good-bye with scarcely a glance over my shoulder.

When I went off to Japan the first time, my friend Jane took me to the airport.

"Hmmph. My family is not even coming to see me off!"

No tears there.

I don't think there were any tears when I left Takumi in California for college 8 years ago. He was SO ready to get away, and I was SO ready to stop mothering him.

When Leiya went off to high school 7 years ago... well, that was hard. We both had soggy handkerchiefs that time...

But my mother has never been a weeper. For the past four or five years she usually waves good-bye to me at the front door (the last time she came to the airport with us I almost missed my flight... She's not too rapid a walker...) but I find it harder and harder to stay dry eyed. My mother is 90. And my next scheduled visit is a year away...

Takumi is picking me up to take me to LAX in a couple hours so our good-byes will be said at the front door again. I'm already thinking I'll need my handkerchief.