An Empty Nest, A Full Heart

I dropped my youngest son at his dormitory at UT Austin, where he’ll be studying Electrical and Computer Engineering. This was his dream school. Though Computer Science was his first choice, this program is the next best thing and he couldn’t be happier. The excitement was clear in his eyes. This was the moment he had been working towards since 4, 5 years.

For me, it was different. Being from a South Asian background, where family bonds are so deeply woven into daily life, I thought this moment would break me. My second child, my youngest, stepping into adulthood – it felt like the “empty nest” chapter I had only heard about.

The day of the move itself was full of practical hurdles – jammed roads, tight parking, carrying boxes, and setting up his room. Once that was done, we went for a short walk around the campus. The noise of move-in day faded away.

That’s when it hit me. The wide campus lawns, the buzzing students, the air of excitement, it all pulled me back to my own college days. The mix of anxiety, freedom, and discovery. The anxiety of what was next, the feeling of freedom, the possibility of it all – it wasn’t just his experience. Strangely, I felt like I was reliving it all over again, maybe even enjoying the moment more than my son did.

Above everything, I felt proud. Proud that I could bring him to this stage. Proud that I could create an environment where he could dream big and chase that dream.

It wasn’t sadness that filled me, but gratitude. Gratitude that my son is stepping into a future he has worked so hard for, and joy that I could walk beside him, at least till this point in his journey. It wasn’t about an empty nest. It was about seeing him ready to fly.