My son came back downstairs just to say goodnight properly

Dear Delyara, Teenagers don’t always do that. He had already gone up. Teeth brushed, hoodie on, one sock somehow missing as usual. Then a minute later he came back down, walked into the kitchen where I was putting lunch things away, put one arm around me, and said, “Night, Mum,” in that half-grown voice that still sometimes catches me off guard. I know it sounds small. But there are stages of motherhood where affection gets less casual because the children are busy becoming themselves. When they return voluntarily, even briefly, it feels like a gift. I am trying to notice those gifts while they are still ordinary.