Letting Go

Today was a big day for me. My boys are 15 and 12. They love to go and visit friends and family. They like sleepovers with their friends. But they get homesick. A few years ago, Matt went away for 36 hours to a friend's cabin and he called us 4 times. Last year he flew by himself to vivit his friend in FL for a few days. We were meeting him there, so he was only away from us for the better part of two days.
Today he left for a week of basketball camp. This is a big deal. The camp is a "showcase" type of camp, where college coaches come and watch them and do some recruiting. It is ranked as one of the top camps in the Northeast. He has been invited to participate for three years and he has turned them down every year. This year, the invitation came and he wanted to go. HIs friends were going. Originally, his whole team was going but the numbers slowly dwindled. He stuck it out though. He left at noon with a friend and his dad. He is staying in a college dorm and playing ball from 8 am until 8 pm every day. I know he will do great. I know that he will love it. I know that he will realize how independent he really is. But I am still worried about him. It's just one more step toward his leaving. This is the child who told me last week that while he wants to go to college in FL, he knows he will return here because he will miss us, his home, and his friends too much to stay away. Patrick, on the other hand, is probably already packed for college.
So, I am reluctantly letting go. It's just the beginning. He'll be back, creating chaos within the week. And we will be one step closer to his leaving for good.