General Discussion

It is a grieving of sorts as you say good bye to a child moving on to the next stage of her life.
You are grieving the loss of the previous stage. And a child who lived with you but is now moving out
and an adult.

And it is also exciting to see them so grown up.

She will stumble and make mistakes, but that is how we get smart.
We do some screwing up along the way.
But trust that you have instilled values and morals that will guide her.

She is still going to need her parents.
She will come back to visit, you will visit her.

A piece you are missing because you have not done it before is how
much fun it is to have a child in college. The campus, the classes, the romances,
the activities, the football games. You will either hear about all of it, or
be able to do some of the activities.

Then they get married and that is another stage of hope, fun, and new family members.