Dear God, Note from Mother of Teenage Girl

Dear God,

Please help me do my best by Figgy. It was easier when things were black and white--as in, you can't take your friend's toy, you have to go to bed now, it's bathtime.

It's harder now, when she stays up way later than us, and is on the cusp of moving out for college.

Please help me be a model of goodness. Help me instill fair values, kindness, consideration, morals, ethics and joy in life.

Help me be patient and wise, calm and strong. Help me remember that I am a parent, not a friend.

Help me do my work and use my talent, so that she can continue to see that those are honorable and important steps, too.

Help me spend wisely and make nutritious meals and take care of myself, to model healthy behavior.

Please help H. and me remember that we still do have our hands on the steering wheel, even as Figgy faces her 18th birthday next month.

Thank you. Signing off at 11:20 P.M. on a Sunday in July, when she is out with her friends at another friend's home. [I think the parents are on vacation.]

Love, Alice