花季故事
作者：Chantel Morel
媽媽，我知道你擔心我，但還是放手讓我自己出去闖蕩。媽媽，感謝你對我的信任。
My mother always reminds me that on the first day of kindergarten, while other kids were crying for their moms not to go, I was telling her to leave already. She usually tells this story to others proudly. But to me she says it a little more hesitantly【遲疑地】—sort of like, "Yeah, you always thought you were grown up."
Though she likes to brag【誇耀】 about my accomplishments【成就】, I think my mom is like most parents in wanting her kids to need her and learn from her. Most parents worry about their children being out in the world on their own.
Ironically, it's from my mother that I inherited【遺傳】 my self-sufficiency【自足,自負】. I don't break down easily, and neither does she. I'd rather help people than be helped. She's always putting others before herself, and I tend to do the same thing.
At times my mom has been uncomfortable seeing these qualities in me. For example, when I was 12, I went to Puerto Rico all by myself to stay with my grandmother for the summer. My mom was extremely nervous about it. She kept telling me how things were different in Puerto Rico, to always put on sunscreen, not to wander【漫步】 away from my grandmother, and other warnings. She helped me pack and did not leave the airport until she saw my plane take off.
But despite her worries, she let me go on my own. As I moved into my teens, she continued to give me space to grow and learn, even when it might have been difficult for her. Sure, there were times when she'd nag【不斷地嘮叨】 me about certain choices I made, but for the most part she did not stand in my way.