I'll begin with some background story:

I know it sounds cheesy, but I grew up in a very loving household that included my mom, my dad, my younger sister, and my dog. Growing up, my parents always made sure that my sister and I had everything we needed and more. However, when I was 13, my parents decided that their marriage wasn't working anymore and that it'd be best for everyone if they got a divorce. Still, even after the divorce process was over, they made choices so that my sister's and my life stayed as normal as possible. They made arrangements so that we would spend quality time with both of them.

Time went by and things cooled down. My parents' love for their daughters made them evolve into becoming good friends, there even came a point where my dad would come over almost every single day. I mean, some things were definitely different. For example, holidays and other special occasions. Also, it was very clear that they were not married anymore and had no plans of getting back together.

When I was 15, my mom, my sister and I went to Colorado for a week during the summer. My mom had been to Colorado before because she attended a conference there a year or two earlier. She loved it so much that she wanted to show us all the beautiful things she saw. As a matter of fact, my sister and I loved it as well. Eventually, the trip came to an end and we went back to Mexico, and a short time after, my mom got offered a position in the organization that hosted the conference in Colorado, that my mom had attended to. We decided to take it as a sign. So, my parents talked about it and they decided that it was a great opportunity for her as well as an amazing experience for my sister and me. It was the perfect opportunity to live in another country as "local people".

End of the background story...

Just like that, the entire process of moving to Colorado came together. There was only one big thing. My dad wasn't coming with us. Definitely, my biggest concern was leaving him alone, since my entire life we had always been kind of a unit. I was used to seeing him every day, and I knew that he was used to seeing his daughters just as much.

The original plan was to only live in Colorado for a year and then come back to Mexico. So, even though saying goodbye was hard, it was also the beginning of an adventure. Plus, my mom always kept a safe place for us.

The first year, I went back to Mexico to see my dad and the rest of my family and friends plenty of times during the holidays and other long breaks. However, towards the end of that first year, we decided that we wanted to stay another year.

Little did we know that a single year would turn into four years and counting. Eventually, it became really expensive to keep going to Mexico so frequently, so we stopped going after some years.

I would still message my dad and talk to him on the phone several times a week. But there were difficult times where I just needed my dad. I wanted to hug him or just feel his presence near me. I must confess too, we're both pretty awful at holding conversation over the phone. So, it wasn't the same when I just needed advice from him, or when he was sick and I couldn't see him.

On the other hand, I'll always admire my mom for assuming the responsibility of taking her two daughters to a truly unknown place for us. She made sure we were fine and made a new home for us, far away from everyone we knew. Also, she always tried to keep things interesting by taking us on trips.

Conclusion...

I think that growing up with both parents in my life and then moving to a different country without one of them, made me appreciate both of them even more. Then, leaving my other parent to go to college, put things into perspective and I can feel their love more than ever.

In the long run, I think that if I hadn't made that move, I wouldn't have fully realized how lucky I've been. Furthermore, I am thankful because I became independent enough to make choices of my own, without being afraid to move around the world to chase my dreams.