leaving the nest and returning home

I just returned from the little tiny corner of the world I was born in, a small Midwestern town surrounded by cornfields.  It is flat and vast with a smattering of farmhouses, barns and an outcropping of trees here and there to provide shelter to the homes that are hidden within them.  This little corner of the world felt like home enough growing up...surrounded by family, friends and all things familiar.  But when I hit young adulthood I couldn't escape quickly enough.  The open fields and monotonous landscape surrounding our peaceful clean little oasis felt like a prison closing in on me.  I cherished the relationships that spawned and nurtured me into adulthood but the familiarity of it all became oppressive and stifling and I knew I needed to leave in order to stretch open my wings to fly.   What an odd experience to return with my daughters in tow.  While I did not return from mountain vistas and ocean seascapes to the exact place of my birth...I did choose to return within driving distance somewhat motivated by a desire to give them roots of their own so that they too would one day have the best chance of taking flight.  Things have a way of coming full circle.  Wondering if our girls will want to hit the road too when they enter their prime.  Watching them grow and evolve thus far has taught me that they are truly their own people with different needs from my own.  I pray to give them wings to fly when the time is right for them to leave the nest.  I look forward to seeing what their maiden flight looks like as it will surely be different from my own.