Warning! Once a Mother, Always a Mother

If I could just stop being a mother, life would be so much easier! If any of my kids are living at home, it's hard for me to settle down at night if I have no idea where they are or when they are coming home! If I know they're going to be out real late, that's fine, but if I picture them dead beside the road with no one even knowing where they are. . .ugh, that's kind of uncomfortable. Or if they just disappear into thin air and the minutes tick on by with no sign of missing individual, my Mother thing gets uneasy.

Such was the case last night with one of our sons whose name starts with C. I got home from a Stampin Up workshop in pretty good season and son C was busy on the computer. All was well. I occupied myself with various things until nearly 11 when I headed to bed. No C was anywhere to be seen by this time--not downstairs or upstairs or, or anywhere else! Dear husband had turned out the outside lights, so dear wife (that's me) turned them back on so C wouldn't have to grope his way home in the dark from singing in the church, practicing piano in the church, visiting brother C or wherever he might have taken off to. And I went to bed.

But as the minutes passed by, the mother thing kicked in. Where could he be? Did he fall asleep on the couch in the basement? What could he be doing? He's going to have to work tomorrow! Is he doing something at the men's dorm (at this hour??) etc. etc. Sometime after midnight, I padded down to the living room to stare out the window at the light at the end of the driveway, willing son C to appear. By 12:30, I decided that Sudoku might as well occupy my time as sitting there wondering idly where the missing son was. Suddenly, there was an odd bang from the upper regions in the vicinity of the attic! What was that!?! Then the closing of the attic door and the pad, pad pad of feet down the stairs, and he appeared.

"Were you in the attic," I queried? "Yeah," was the reply just like of course I was in the attic, why wouldn't I be in the attic til going on 1 in the morning, why did you wonder? I went to bed, kind of mad. As Neil turned over sleepily and I told him where lost son had been, he replied, "Well, at least he was as quiet as a mouse!"

Moral of the story: Mothers shouldn't ever worry about their kids. (I guess) but if you are a grown up kid, be kind and remember that your Mother just might not be able to help still being a mother and she might like a clue as to when you plan to be in. Or get your own place and you can spend all night in the attic or anywhere else you like and your mother will never know!