Before You Go, I Just Want you to Know

Hello Love Lights,

So I did a thing. I dropped my middle daughter off for her first year of college. You would think I have practice in this department since I dropped my son off last year. But can we be honest? Sons and daughters are as different as pineapples and nectarines. With my son, I was actually relieved to drop him off. (Shhh, please don’t tell him). We had gotten to the point where I thought to myself, this house is not big enough for three adults – especially for one who isn’t contributing to one single bill. This manchild has got to go. It wasn’t until a week after drop off that I started feeling sobby and squishy over the absence of him.

With my daughter, my middle diva, I started emoting weeks before we had to take her to school. I kept thinking of all the things that I wanted her to know about life, boys, safety, sex, college drinking, networking, friendship and the list goes on. Have you ever felt like — I wish my mom would have told me that? Well, to relieve my own consciousness and to prepare her for young adulthood without me, I wrote her a letter called Before You Go, I Just Want you to Know. Here are 7 of the 25 things I told her that I didn’t want her to forget in my 3 page letter:

1. Surround yourself with good people: People who are smarter than you, work harder than you and are slightly more ambitious. Iron sharpens iron. If you are the smartest one in the room, you are in the wrong room.

2. Make your schoolwork your priority: Always. Do the things you don’t want to do first, so you can do the things you want to do with ease. Don’t ever skip class: Period. Catching up is never worth it.

3. Be kind to everyone: Don’t burn any bridges, you never know when you will need that person. The world is very small.

4. Be impeccable with your word: Your word is your bond (as my father always said). Do what you say you are going to do and give it your all. Your words are powerful. Always remember to say and practice kind words ESPECIALLY to yourself.

5. Be early: Live by the rule that early is on time, on time is late, and late is unacceptable.

6. Put God first in everything that you do. Pray, meditate and listen to a spiritual teacher daily. Don’t crash into your day. Ease in with a practice that will uplift you while setting the tone for your day.

7. Whenever you feel overwhelmed, lonely, sick or just down: Call me. I am always here for you. Nothing you ever tell me will change that. My favorite job is loving and guiding you. If you need me to drive eight hours for dinner and a hug, just say the word and I’ll be right by your side.