Migratory Creatures

Last fall, my two children (now 16 and 12 years old) flew for the first time alone to Montreal to visit family. They hadn’t seen my siblings and their cousins in many years. A lovely, enjoyable time was had by all.

The adults had the opportunity to get to know my children as individuals with intelligence (so like their mother), a flair for languages (their father), good manners (once again their father), beauty (who knows), and that particular sense of humour common to our family. For my children, the trip was an opportunity to meet their maternal side of the family for the first time; since they couldn’t remember meeting them when they were small children.

Strangely, even though I didn’t accompany them on that trip, the trip really taught me a lot. The whole experience was a liberating one. The positive experiences my children had, and those my extended family reported, made me realise that I’m no longer responsible to lead the migratory journey from one continent to the other.

My children are very much capable to journeying on their own; navigating international airport terminals changeovers, custom and security measures, and flight delays. They are capable of forming their own relationships with their relatives. They are intelligent enough to see through the confusing veils of complex family dynamics. They are gentle in spirit, and thus, kind in their opinions. As you can see, they are extra-ordinary children, or maybe they are just migratory creatures: comfortable in one culture as much as the other.