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A Mother’s Response During Corona
My son calls me from a rural area on the small island of Rhodes, in the middle of the Mediterranean. It’s his first time away from home away on his own.
I can feel the tension in his text on Whattapp — a simple Hi, can you talk? but it holds so much. A mother knows.
His voice is shaky and he sounds tired or sick. My internal alarm is activated.
I am feeling anxious, he tells me.
I feel for him — a Millennial on his own for the first time, across the world, and not only is he worried about Corona, but the wifi is down — a Millennial nightmare. He’s in a cabin on his own behind the main house and the next house is not even visible.
He’s all alone and I feel his panic.
Months back he announced he was going on Birthright, a free 2 week trip for Jewish coming-of-agers to visit Israel. He would be taking an unknown amount of extended time to travel throughout Europe and Asia.
Letting go of your child is a rite of passage for a mother. And I wanted to let him go Well.
I feel confident I gave him tools and wisdom to navigate this world to the best of my ability. I think the moment my kids were born I started teaching them to leave the nest. They are not…
