A little hole opened up in his heart

A week ago today we got up at 4am to usher our Russian son/brother/friend out into the car and to the airport and back to his true home in Kazan, Tartarstan.  Both my boys woke up without any hassle, came downstairs and sat around bleary-eyed and silent as final items were tucked into suitcases and backpacks.  Then Ildar gave out hugs all around and walked out of our lives.  Theo looked up at me and said, "Mom, I feel a little hole opening up in my heart."  Me too, kiddo. As Jon and Ildar pulled away from the curb, I trundled Theo and Eli up to my bed to try to get a bit more sleep before we faced the day, and after quite a bit of tossing and turning, we all fell asleep.  I woke up a few hours later and watched my boys come back to conciousness.  I saw Theo give himself a sort of mental patdown, checking his body and soul for areas that hurt.  Then he humphed, opened his eyes, and quietly said, "I thought I'd be really sad, but Mom, I'm not.  With skype and email, Ildar is not so far away after all."