Do you have everything?

My daughter is packing to leave for college. She has a list. It includes laundry detergent, 78 different types of conditioner, a 1500 CD case, notebooks, hangers (I didn’t know she knew what these were), phone chargers, i-pod chargers, charger chargers, enough underwear so she never has to use the laundry detergent, dry-erase markers, a wastebasket (ditto the hangers) and about 500 other items essential to success in the pursuit of a baccalaureate degree.

Meanwhile, there are things I wanted to tell her for the last 17 years but may have forgotten. They come to me fast and frequently, on waking in the middle of the night, or while driving, or walking the dog. I make notes to tell her. Or I forget to make notes.

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