Thursday, November 30, 2006

Tuesday saw Lucy going to her first interview at De Montfort University at Leicester. I had been entrusted with getting her to Derby station, but with my time keeping, this was not an easy feat. We hardly got past the village shop before we were caught in a queue of traffic. Having made it over the first roundabout, we were met with a second crocodile of immobile vehicles. "I knew we should have left at 8.00am" Lucy threw at me (we left at 20 past), but I resisted reminding her that I was actually ironing her clothes to wear at that time. As we sat there wishing we had started earlier, a minor miracle occurred. It was as though a blockage in a sink was removed and suddenly all the traffic drained away. In fact we arrived at the station 10 minutes early. I shooed Lucy out of the car, expecting her to go without a second glance, but she was clearly feeling insecure and I began to feel very guilty that I had insisted that I was far too busy to accompany her. So I posted the 50p required for 20 minutes in the machine and made my way over to Platform 6 and waved her off knowing that one more of the apron strings that attaches mother to daughter was being severed. I had made the decision not to go to Leicester as I didn't want to cramp her style or embarass her. She who became Head Girl in Year 11 and spends a lot of time organising fund raising events and teachers at school. Her latest one was a life size Cluedo game in aid of The Faso Fund. She who at 5 years old had come home from school and announced that, no, she didn't want to read through her reading book with me at home, that, she had stated with authority, was for school time and home time was for play. I have to admire anyone who can stand up for their beliefs. I just wish that I had the same conviction. I also wish that home time now had not become 'Friends' and MSN time. Sometimes, just sometimes there is a chink in her armour, but Lucy, don't change, we need more people like you.

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