I’ve always loved work. (Our longtime house sitter says it’s because I’m a Capricorn. I have no idea what that means, but I’ll own it.) I currently have two “job” jobs as well as wrangling half of the house chores, and a fair share of tending to our pets, Kismet, Zuri and Fig with my husband Alan. And without sounding sappy or cloyingly precious, my most important job has been as a mother to our daughter Elle for the past 18 years. By every measure she’s been an “easy” kid, yet as nearly all parents know, it’s still extraordinarily hard, soul wrenching work…work that gives you sleepless nights, grey hair and TMJ.
But like we’ve prepared for, and as it’s supposed to, my “work” as a mother is about to change. Elle is off to college this fall at Santa Clara University, so my day to day is going to look a lot different. The time I’m about to get back from not picking up errant socks alone is immeasurable. From what I hear, being an empty nester is fantastic, and many of my friends make it look amazing, but I don’t know if I’m going to be any good at it.
I’m heartened to see that many of the people featured in the stories in this issue aren’t just making their next chapters look bearable, they’re thriving. They’re collecting art, making art, playing in orchestras, baking, volunteering and even sailing and flying around the globe. Intellectually, I know that they can’t have felt that differently than I do, and just look at them now. We’ll see what fills my blank space.
So, to my friends and neighbors also entering your renaissance, I’ll see you on the other side.
