Are They Happy?

Last year, during the last phone call I had with my mother before she died quite suddenly a few days later, she said to me toward the end of the call, "Are you happy?"  Certainly, I hadn't ever been an easy child, and I had had a lot of woes (real or perceived) in my life.  I tend toward drama (surprise!), so pretty much everyone knows when I am unhappy.  But at the time of that call, after having moved to Washington with the man I love, and in the middle of looking for a lot on which to build our dream house, I could very easily and truthfully say, "Yes, I am really happy!"  And my mom said, "I am so glad to hear that.  That's all that really matters."

We parents want so much for our children, try to control so much of their upbringings, attempt to change the things that are bad in their lives (often, even when they don't think they are bad things!), and strive to either gently (or not so gently) guide them through this crazy obstacle course called life.

But in the end...I think it amounts to just plain wanting our babies to be happy.

A couple years ago, my daughter called me and told me (and I didn't expect it) that she was breaking up with her husband.  I recalled having to make the same phone call to my own mother, almost twenty years earlier.  My mom said to me, "Oh, Janine, after all your dad and I represented, how could you?" and I replied, "Mom, after everything you and my father represented, how could I NOT?!" And she understood.  She didn't like it, but she understood.  So, I got over my initial shock, and then asked my daughter what I could do to help the transition.  I have never, since those initial two minutes or so, questioned her decision, and I see now that she is happy, and healthy, and living the life she wants and loves with a man who is quirky, and irreverent, and adores her the way she deserves to be adored.  She is happy, so I'm happy.

Just before I moved from California, about a year and half ago, my son said, "I need to talk to you about something, and you should sit down."  Of course, my first response was, "Are you dying?  Do you have cancer?"  After a brief and minor heart attack, he assured me that he was healthy, and that he had decided to join the LDS church.  I asked him, "Are you happy?" and he said he was, so I went to his baptism, tried not to scold my daughter for joking around with the bishop (refer back to my second paragraph and the part about controlling them), and watched him grow to embrace this religion but also not leave the embrace of his non-LDS family.  

And now? My daughter is purchasing a home, all on her own merits.  She works for a great place, has a responsible job as a developer, has a great man in her life, and makes time to talk to me every week on the phone (ok, once I got over my passive-aggressive ways and stopped complaining bitterly about not hearing from her, she asked if it would be easier if we scheduled talks...it works great!)  My son has met a young woman and is fairly sappily in love.  (I haven't met her yet, but will soon).  He also has a good job, is looking to make his first big move, and seems to be a fully-functional member of society.  (This is a far cry from days of yore, when I used to tell my friends that if the cats were both still alive and nothing was on fire, it was a good day).

Sometimes, they do things we wouldn't do (or wish THEY wouldn't do).
Sometimes, they don't agree with us.
Sometimes, they get piercings and tattoos (oh wait, that was me).
Sometimes, they sing the same line from a song over and over for three days in Disneyland just to make you scream in frustration (even when they are 30!)
Sometimes, they play truly mortifying "games" in public places and you run from restaurants, thinking you can never show your face there again.
Sometimes, they go to college; sometimes, not.
Sometimes, they follow societal norms; sometimes, not.
Sometimes, they live their lives the way we'd choose for them to do so; sometimes, not.

But... ARE THEY HAPPY!????   Well, OK, then.  The rest is just logistics.

-- Dedicated to my two happy munchkins