Adjusting to the Empty Nest Syndrome – Again

I have spent the past few days trying to get back into my “normal” routine. Whatever that might be. It is always a shock to my system when the kids have been here for a visit and then they leave, but this year it seemed to hit harder. Most likely because of the way life is right now, but I think also because my Kat, the youngest, my daughter, literally flew the coop to new life of her own, many many miles away. This will be the first time she has lived alone, in a place all her own, and she’s doing it in a foreign land where everyone is a stranger. So what is it about a daughter doing that that is more scary than when a son does it?

Before they left however, we went to visit the wetlands with the Artistic One, on a night when the skies were filled with smoke from distant fires. I had this notion that just before sunset would be an excellent time to see many waterfowl. Turned out I was mistaken.

What we saw was swarms of hundreds of tree swallows.

The sky was filled with swallows, swooping, diving, soaring above and all around us. The wetlands is a perfect breeding ground for our infamous Midges, which seem to be a special treat for the swallows.

There were grasses, of course, gracefully leaning away from the breeze.

There were a few wildflowers still blooming in this midsummer season, when they get little moisture to nourish them.

There were a few dead leaves, discarded by their trees.

There was a sign, warning that shooting in this area is not allowed. I cannot imagine how son happened to be standing just next to the sign! I would never have asked him to pose like this. Of course I wouldn’t!

Finally as we were leaving in the dim evening light, an egret. The moral of this story is that if you are patient, if you wait long enough, you will find what you are looking for.

As I have. I have found my peace again. Kat is safely ensconced in her apartment in the very southern part of South Korea, happy where she is, making friends already, exploring, growing. Gep is preparing to head back to Oman for another year, perhaps longer. I am happy knowing that they are happy. They will be back in December. Until then, life is providing enough.