out she goes

I wrote this ten days ago. Not sure that I really want to post it, but I'm going to anyway.

It’s the end of an era and the beginning of a great future.

I got home from a weekend in Leadville watching Lance tear up the LT100 to find a pile of things returned to me from my oldest daughter who cleaned out her room to move to college.

As a side note, we have a clash of parental philosophies at our house. I grew up in a house where the kids’ rooms were kept for them after they moved out. Heck, my room at Dad’s house still has my old high school wrestling paraphernalia hanging on the wall. Kind of like a shrine and I’d say, needing cleaned out, but a room where the kids are supposed to be welcome to come back.

My wife wants the room cleaned out to create a guest room, which we truly need.

The room was cleaned out, of course.

I now have back some wool socks that were worn when we went hunting, some cycling gear and what just crushed me, one of our family campaign shirts. (it’s four years old and doesn’t fit her anyway)

It all seems so final to me. Like it is actually sinking in that this beautiful little girl who I’ve cared so deeply about for almost 19 years is now gone.

I realize that they are never (we hope) completely gone, but dang, I also know that I won’t see her more than a few times a year, possibly, from now on.

Nineteen years, gone in the blink of an eye.

Have you ever listened to that Kenny Chesney song, “There goes my life”? That’s my song right now.