And He's Off...

A little after 6 this morning Ed and I dropped Jack at the Louisville airport to catch a flight to Shenzhen, China. He's off to China's Guangdong Province to teach English and American Culture to high school students.

Shenzhen, Jack's new town, is bordered by Hong Kong to the south and, until 1979, was a sleepy fishing village. Today, it boast a population of more than 10 million people.

I'm excited for Jack and the journey he is embarking on. I'm confident he will navigate his way around this new culture, pick up the Cantonese language, figure out how to cook with new ingredients and eat with chopsticks, find a guitar or accordion and make music and new friends, and fully experience life on his own terms. He's done it before: college at McGill University in Montreal and a teaching year in Hagan, Germany. But, I have to tell you, as a mom, it is tough to say farewell. To hug him one last time, and then to let him go.

Good luck Buddy. Venture forth. Have a wonderful adventure. But know that the cottage will be waiting for you when you decide it is time to come home. I miss you already.