Just a week after having to drive to Breaux Bridge, LA, to rescue Adam, he has already flown the coop. He left yesterday morning to spend the next eight weeks in Oaxaca, Mexico, where he'll be studying at a language school to improve his Spanish. I'm excited for him, because I believe that this will be an experience he will never forget. Many have the opportunity to travel to foreign lands, but few are blessed to be able to live in a foreign country, and the experience of living in a country is fundamentally different than merely passing through.
I've been fortunate to have had the experience to live in a foreign country twice. Not a day goes by when I am not reminded of my experiences in Cyprus and Kosovo. I may not have learned much of the language (except for a few obscenities), but I developed relationships and saw a side of life that I never would have been exposed to as a tourist.
Adam's 21 now, and he's finding his way in the world. It's been fun watching him grow and develop, but I do miss having him around. For one, he has always been the one to diagnose and fix any computer problems I may have. Even better, it's not often that I find someone his age with such an active curiosity and nimble intellect. I've been blessed with a rather high IQ, but I can say without embarrassment that Adam is smarter than I am. I never imagined the day when I'd be able to say that I've learned a great deal from a 21-year-old, but I have. I miss the intellectual stimulation of having him around.
I'm fascinated by the possibilities that life holds in store for him. He's at the age when dreams and possibilities are still real and tangible, and he is smart enough and capable enough to achieve just about whatever he puts his mind to. To say that he has a bright future would be something of an understatement.
I hope his experience in Oaxaca will show him a different side of life. He's been fortunate enough to have grown up in an environment where his mother has provided everything he wanted. Now he is in a Third World country, and he is going to have to get used to seeing and dealing with abject poverty for the first time. My hope is that it will show him a perspective on life he may not have had until now. Seeing suffering on television is one thing; you can always turn it off. When you live in a place where you are surrounded by it, you cannot make it go away. Dealing with being viewed as a "Rich American" can be a tremendously diffcult thing to deal with. It was a tough lesson for me to learn, but it did give me an appreciation and a new sense of gratitude for the American passport I carried.
I miss Adam, but I know he is going to have an incredible experience. I suppose this is what you raise children for, to see them leave the nest and find their way in the world, but yes, letting go is most definitely the hardest part.
