Know Thyself.

The Kid is coming home! She has been in a different world, thousands of miles away for the past year. The year has both gone by quickly and dragged on. We've both tried new things, new lives, and have grown and changed. Some days I wonder if we'll still recognize each other. Will we revert to our established mother-daughter relationship, or will we recognize each other as well-rounded full people, more than just a daughter, more than just a mother?

Three things about knowing thyself:

- Peopledon't mean to hide parts of themselves. It just happens as relationships build. We show the parts we can to others. We try protect ourselves from hurt. As much as I like to think I am always "just me", I know that I show different parts of me to different people at different times. It changes, kaliedoscope-like, with little shifts. Here's the thing - it isn't a trick with mirrors and glittery glass; it is me being me, with all my many parts. It is you being you, with all your many parts.

- Through my autobiography course, I've had some amazing memories bubble up to my waking brain. The memories triggered by this course have led me to view chunks of my life in a far more objective way than I ever have, and I see quite clearly my path of growth and change. I've written some pages on major life themes and my values and beliefs. It has grounded me on who I am (today) and how I came to be this person. It has shown me that events wove together, even those that seem unconnected, to become my life. It has taught me about what I hide from others and shown me why.

- When I've gotten close to knowing and understanding myself, becoming who I am meant to be, my life shifts, I shift. There is another layer underneath, waiting for me to discover. I need to rearrange my thoughts and realizations about who I am, unhide a part of me that was laying dormant, and discover another facet of my person. It is an amazing and sometimes painful process of growth. Each time, I have more peace and more connection with something greater than me. God, the Universe, the Creator, the Force. Call it what you will. It is there and it is me. It is you.

For a long time, I have believed that things happen for a reason, although we often don't see that reason for a very long time, and sometimes not ever. Sometimes when we think stuff happens to us or for us or because of us, it really happens to make a change in someone else's life. The Kid had to leave for herself but she also had to leave for me. It's been a year of incredible growth and change for both of us, to help us each get to where we need to be on our roads to what's next. She will arrive in less than two weeks. We will rejoice! We will laugh. We will cry. We will recognize each other. We will see each other with new eyes. We will hide parts of ourselves. We will see the change and growth we've each experienced. We will open new parts of ourselves. We will revert to our established mother-daughter relationship. We will hate to say goodbye as she leaves again, and we will know ourselves and each other in a fuller way than we did one year ago.