Dear Mom and Dad,

 

I have just six months left in this home

This home of tears

Of constant wars

Of too many nights gone without saying

“I love you.”

 

Just six months left in this home of laughter

Of classical music playing at Saturday brunches

Of making terrible puns

Of the old plum tree

Of so many nights filled with family and

“I love you.”

 

This home has a feeling to it

An indescribable, complex feeling

But it is all around

In the faded wood floors

In the intricate glass windows

In the leaky sink

And the howling dog.

 

Most days I wish for time to stop

To go back

To be five again

To be without a worry in the world

To be unafraid

And so loved.

 

In six months I’ll move across the country

To attend some university I now regret committing to.

And although it’s the 21st century

And modern technology will keep us close

I know that the minute I step out that door

Things will change

Forever

And I’ll no longer be your little girl.

 

And in return for every sacrifice, for every tear

You shed over my well-being,

All I can give you

Is a set of promises.

 

I promise to call every day,

And when that inevitably fails,

To call every other day

And if that doesn’t work,

Then once every week.

 

I promise to FaceTime you as much as possible

So that between the times we see each other,

I never forget the curves of your faces

Or the angles of your noses

And the wrinkles of your brows.

 

I promise to listen to your voicemails

When the sounds of your laughs fade in my mind.

 

I promise to never go out alone late at night

Or early in the morning.

I promise to never go on runs with my earbuds in,

Unaware of my surroundings.

I promise to never wear skirts too short

Or tops too revealing

To never set down my drink at a party

To never trust a stranger I’ve just met.

 

I promise to never let any boy break the heart that

You took 18 years to strengthen through patient parenting.

 

And although these promises can never equate

To the 18 years of unconditional love that you gave me,

I promise one last thing, something that I will strive for

Far past my college years.

 

I promise to make you proud.

 

Your little girl,

Sierra