Learning to be a college kid’s mommy

I’m a mom of young kids, and while they drive me crazy sometimes, I tell myself that they will not be this young forever, and I should cherish every precious moment with them.

I was reminded of this again when, during one of those rare mommy me-time with friends (which, like all mommy activities always end up being about our kids), someone shared how nerve-wracking it had been for her to send off her child to college a few months ago.

She was overjoyed that her kid got into the University of the Philippines, but her daughter’s course took her to the Los Baños campus, which was a long way away from their home in Quezon City. We told her that was probably part of the plan—to move away from mommy and daddy so she could be independent. She laughed it off but admitted that was true—weren’t we all like that once?

One thing I wasn’t ready for was my friend’s admission that seeing her child so independent and capable of taking care of herself made her feel less useful as a mother. I wondered if I’d feel that way when my children are grown up.

Anyway, she told us how one time, when her daughter could not come home for the weekend because their class had an urgent project that required everyone to stay, her mommy worries surfaced: what about her allowance, her food, her clothes, etc. She had always replenished her daughter’s needs when she spent the weekend at home. My friend did not know how to send money on a weekend.

Thankfully, there was another child home, who was techie enough to teach her about GCash. Apparently, that’s what her daughter’s classmates use, too, to receive allowances from their parents. My friend immediately downloaded the app and navigated her way through its features with the help of her younger kid.

I was surprised that she had never used the app. Many of us in my mommy circle use it already to pay bills, buy prepaid load, get groceries, etc. Anyway, easily enough, she learned how to cash in at a nearby convenience store and immediately sent money to her daughter’s bank account. That simple thing of being able to attend to her daughter’s need made her feel like a valuable mommy again, she said.

Now, my friend is not only at ease with using the app for sending money, she has also discovered the convenience of using GCash’s money transfers for shopping! I think she’ll snap out of her sentimentality soon, what with the frequent buzz at the door for her shopping deliveries.