dear mom and dad: thank you

Dear Mom and Dad

Thank you for supporting my dream, even if it might not be the dream you thought I might dream.

Dear Mom and Dad, I don’t tell you often enough that I’m pretty lucky to have you as parents. You’ve supported me through a lot, from scraped knees and bicycle accidents when I was a kid to helping me out with homework and school projects in high school. And let’s not forget letting your baby girl head off to university ten hours away, not to mention all of the semesters/summers abroad that I racked up!

Thank you for taking me traveling when I was a kid. My brothers might not remember New Zealand, or even Ireland, but I do. Thank you for showing me that there is a great big world out there and that I am only a small part in it. For giving me experiences… like the Lipizzaner horses in Vienna, the Alps, Heidelberg Castle, and Mont St Michel. Thank you for braving Parisian traffic so I could look out the sunroof and see the Eiffel Tower. It only took me ten years to get back there.

Thank you for also taking us to places like the Brittany cemeteries. I might not remember it as well as some other experiences, but seeing endless rows of little white crosses is a memory that is seared into my head.

But more than that, thank you for letting me be myself, not some version of myself that you want me to be. You’ve told me time and time again that you’ll support me, even if you don’t agree with my decision. And you’ve proven that true, time and time again. Every time I make a decision about my life, you’re there cheering me on.

When I dropped out of figure skating and play ice hockey, you took on the parents that said a girl shouldn’t be on the ice with the boys. When I quit playing the violin, you took it in stride that I was never going to be a concert violinist (never, ever.)

And when I moved to Scotland, you sent me off with a card I still have. When I came home, my room was there. You even supported my moving in with a boy, which you definitely didn’t agree with! And when I needed you to come and get me, four years later, you did – no questions.

To cap it off, when I informed you that I was quitting my job to travel, to start my own business, you accepted that as me just being me.

You’ve visited me everywhere I’ve lived, whether it’s just up the street or across oceans. And now, you’re coming to visit me in New Zealand. A place that held such a place in my heart that I focused on relocating here when I realised I couldn’t stay in KC. It’s an unusual place for someone to move… and I’m sure you get all sorts of questions about my vagabond lifestyle.

You probably answer them pretty succinctly: she’s doing what she loves. You’re right. I am. Thank you. I love you.

Would you like to be featured in my Dear Mom and Dad series? Have something you want to tell someone? Email all submissions to sarah@paperinkandpassports.com. Letters will be published as I receive them.