She said she loves holding onto me

I’ve been going through some mental stuff lately, mainly pertaining to my girls growing older (19 and 13). I’m the sole parent and it’s been really difficult to grasp that they aren’t young anymore and my time with them at home as my “kids” is fleeting. I don’t have any intention of living with someone or having more kids, so the thought of being an empty nester (I know it’s a long way off), depresses me so much. Not the being alone, I’m great at that, but being without my girls…wow, I don’t know how I’ll do it. I know I’m being dramatic and I still, god willing, have decades of memories to make with them.

Anyways. The other day my 13 year old and I were driving down a country road, me driving obviously and her riding shotgun. All of a sudden she lays over on the center console and wraps her arms around mine and told me she loves hanging on to me. I’m glad she couldn’t see me because the floodgates opened. She sat like that the entire way there, and I didn’t move a muscle.