If there’s one thing I never thought I would do, it’s call my mom once, twice, even three times a day just to hear her voice. I never realized how much I could miss her until I ventured out on my own.
I miss her warm hugs and goodnight cheek kisses. I miss sitting on the couch with her and watching a documentary while we eat popcorn. I miss sitting in the car with her and listening to country music—which isn’t really my thing—on the way to grab a drink from the nearest gas station or drive-thru. I even miss walking around the grocery store searching for things she didn’t even go in to buy.
The “Hi Maddie” or elongated “Hello Maddie” I hear from the other end of the phone is enough to bring a smile to my face.
The thing is, I know this feeling isn’t just one-sided; she misses me too. I know she misses my person taking up space in our house and stealing her blanket on the couch. I know she misses me talking at the dinner table, watching shows with her before bed and cracking jokes. Even the things I know annoy the crap out of her she misses.
I know it means a lot to my mom that I try to call her every day. Hearing my voice turns her day around. I know there are some days where she just really needs to talk to her daughter–after all, there are some days where I just really need to talk to my mom.
It’s not beyond me that not everyone has a great relationship with their parents or that some have parents watching them from above. However, I can say with almost absolute certainty that everyone has a person in their life that they consider a parental or family figure.
When you miss them, call them. Call them twice. Call them three times. Leave them a voicemail if they don’t answer or simply send them a text to let them know you’re thinking about them.
They miss you too, they’re thinking about you and hearing your voice might just be exactly what they need.
If you need to hear their voice, chances are they need to hear yours too.