We first became empty nesters back in 2015 when Lexi went off to college, only 55 miles away from home.   Back then, I wrote an essay about the importance of embracing the inevitable empty nest, but since that time, our two daughters have flown much further from the nest.

Our oldest and her husband have served in Africa since 2018 and our youngest, Lexi, has taught music in China since 2020.   Interestingly, both moved 6,600 miles away as the crow flies–in precisely opposite directions!  While some may conclude that our kids got as far away from their parents as humanly possible, one thing is certain: the sun never sets on the Forstrom family!

2024 brought everyone back home for doctors’ visits, a family wedding, and most notably the birth of our second grandson.  This past Christmas was very special–our first one in seven years where all of us were together.

And just like that, they’re all gone again and the house seems especially empty.   The toys we just hoisted into the attic will accumulate years of dust before they are played with again — and many will have been outgrown by then.  The delightful memories we made with Jimmy and Jake over the past months will be relived only by pictures and videos.    What a joy it was to watch them grow right before our eyes, but now we’ll only watch them grow from afar–pixels on a Zoom screen.

We’ve gotten used to airport goodbyes over these past seven years, but this farewell felt different.  I need to remember again what I’ve learned before:

I don’t need them to be here,

I must let them go, and

I must entrust them to God’s care.