Because we can't be together on this special day, we celebrate the only way we can, over the internet, continents and a day apart. Erica is off on her big turning-21 adventure in Cairns. It isn't the first time we haven't been together on her birthday, but the only other time she was just 100 miles away at school and her friends were taking her out to party. While she is on this big adventure alone, it helps me feel that I've actually been doing OK as a mother, trying to raise her to be comfortable with being independent.
I frequently tease Erica about the time we had to get a copy of To Kill a Mockingbird, and so we zipped off to Crown Books (I loved that store!). The classics were in alpha order by author and I couldn't remember her name to save my life. I asked Erica to go to the counter and inquire while I perused the shelf. She looked at me with horror on her face, a look that I would have expected if I'd asked her to dance naked through the store or shout out her bra size. She fussed and objected, while I insisted she get over her fear of asking a store clerk a basic question. Sheesh. I have continued to try to stress with her that her mere presence does not cause her to be so interesting or memorable that a bookstore clerk would go home and complain about the nin-cow-poop that had the nerve to ask for the name of an author! She finally asked and, in a fit of trauma from having to do so, promptly forgot. When I asked her to go back and ask again (and write it down, if need be), she insisted we should just be able to drive home, look it up on the internet, and then return to the bookstore to see if they had the book in stock. Forget calling to ask. I proceeded to have an old-fashioned sit in, plopping myself on the floor, checkbook and car keys in hand, and let her know that I'd be happy to wait until she could manage this small task, and started cruising through classics I'm embarrassed to admit I've never read.
Erica asked, and we got the dreaded book. She actually enjoyed it. She still growls a little when I tease her. Now, here she is turning 21, having moved to the other side of the world and taking trips and going on adventures with no prodding. I do not take full credit. I just like to think my nudges helped a bit. My little girl has grown up into a fine young woman.
Now, time to work on her brother, the house monkey :-)
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