I cannot fathom how quick this has escalated – the day when I now have two boys who have turned 18 years old in quick succession, one after the other.
Ayd turns 18 today and it is a day I have simultaneously anticipated and dreaded.
The little boy who made me a Dad for a second time, who cried himself hoarse for the ENTIRE flight from Singapore to Taipei when he was an infant, who rejected a DSA acceptance in Primary School because he would miss his school canteen’s fried bee hoon, is now 18. All grown up and making final preparations for his impending flight from the nest.
With my both boys due to enlist for NS next year, it is MONTHS, not years, that remain before the dynamic of our family changes into something that I cannot yet fully grasp. And I have feelings: lots of big feelings.
But that’s a post for another day.
Today, we celebrate this guy… who’s not that little anymore.
I swell with pride that he is an unassuming young man who never frets about the big stuff, never compares with others about stuff he has or doesn’t have, and never holds grudges. He revels in the simple joys in life (like food, gaming, & YouTube), treats everyone with kindness.
But taking that additional steps to independence have their challenges too – the increasingly shorter responses whenever we converse and the heavier school workload… which makes him super tired (and grumpy) when he returns home late.
All these also show that I have much to learn and adapt, as a parent too.
I am learning to accept that he is able to make decisions on his own now. I am learning that I am his guide and not his commander. I am learning to support him on the sidelines and cheer him on, even if that means having to see him fall and pick himself up again on your own.
Most importantly, I am leaning to let go.
It’s never easy but I can see he is embracing the challenges and even acing them. He is never one to talk about his leadership roles in school but through his teachers, I know he has been stepping up and going beyond in his responsibilities.
So to Ayd, I want to tell you that you have and always will be a wonderful blessing to me, to your Mummy, to your siblings and to everyone else. Look forward with hope and anticipation, not backward with regret. I love you with all of my heart and will always be here for you, no matter what.
I am beyond lucky to be your Dad. Happy 18th Birthday, Ayd!