Trusting Their Wings

So my daughter and a group of friends decided to take a quick trip to Barcelona.

The slow – although somehow still very quick – unfurling of the wings. Testing how far they can take her.

It’s been both testing and reassuring in equal measure. I’ve grown used to being right there when needed. Close by. Available. And now life seems to be doing what life does – we nurture, guide, support from close range for a while, and then, slowly, they begin to discover their own wings.

Or maybe trust their own wings.

And we have to learn to trust them too. Trust them, and trust whatever it is we’ve tried to pass on in those short early years that somehow felt long at the time.

I’ve done a lot of thinking about it these past few days.

She’s still so young.

Will they be OK? It’s a different country. What happens if she needs help? What if something goes wrong?

Then another thought comes in.

She’ll be fine. She’s with good friends. All the mums are in a group chat with them, which provides just enough reassurance without completely pretending we’re not all quietly checking our phones every five minutes.

Then her flight lands.

First message:

“Dad, my data isn’t working.”

My reaction?

Straight to self-judgement.

“You idiot. You were meant to sort this out before she left.”

Then the immediate justification arrives right behind it.

“Well, it was all hectic and rushed.”

And then, of course, dad mode.

“Right. Let’s fix this.”

Everyone else get out of my way, I’m on the case. Looking things up. Thinking through options. Heart rate slightly higher than necessary.

Breathe.

And again.

Wait.

How is she even sending me WhatsApps?

Hotspot off a friend.

Of course.

That’s my girl. Young, fresh thinking. Faced with a problem and immediately finding a solution without turning it into a drama.

And then, a little later, we realised the issue itself was nothing major anyway. Years ago we’d put a roaming block on her phone and simply forgotten it was there.

One small setting quietly sitting in the background.

I just couldn’t see it in the moment.

And suddenly I’m sat there wondering what exactly it was I was so worried about in the first place.

Anyway, I know there’ll be more days like this.

Breathe.

They’ve got this… and so do we!