Emma Beddington’s article (How do I stay in touch with my sons at university without seeming tragic and needy?, 30 October) sent me and my wife down memory lane. We had three sons in four years, so we rapidly had an empty house. I was OK – “They’re grown men now”. My wife wasn’t – “They’re my babies!”
Fifteen years on, one lives in Australia, another in Tokyo and a third in London. I really miss their adult male company (beer, rugby, politics, sport, etc). My wife still misses her “babies”, their sounds and caring for them.
In my time at university, we had no phone – I sent “All OK here” postcards intermittently to my mother, often with a fleeting tinge of filial guilt. Men, unsurprisingly, can never grasp the unfading bond of a mother with her children, those crumbs of information so desperately sought, those touches so fondly needed. Now, seeing my wife, if only I had thought more about my mother. Small comfort to Emma that her boys will feel the same regret in 50 years.
Colin Russell
Glasgow
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