Maegan makes saying goodbye easy-peasy, just like over the weekend, when she had to bid farewell to her Daddy, not for good, just for 11 days because he had a work trip in the US (15 hours time difference, I've given up counting)

The flight was at 9.45am in the morning on Saturday, and we literally dragged Maegan out of her bed into the car at 7.45am because she was still sleepy.

But my husband insisted that she had to see him leave at the departure gate, and when I scratched my head and wondered why, he said: "So that she knows that I'm leaving, and when she picks me up from the airport, she can connect the two and understand why." Hmm, I always thought toddlers had no concept of time?

I wasn't that sure about the assumption but I knew he wanted to catch a last sight of her before he left and I was in no position to deny him that.

So off we went to the airport, with the stormy rain and wind that lashed down at the windows when we were travelling up to Changi. I was a bit upset that he was leaving on a day when the skies were grey and dull. This day would be perfect for a day at home with Maegan, eating our breakfast and reading our papers in leisure, and watching Maegan roll out her little tricks, playing with her toys and cuddling up for a read of her storybooks.

But the day had to be saved for saying goodbye, and I mentally braced myself for the next 11 days without my husband. Different thoughts entered my head: "Perhaps the flight would be cancelled due to bad weather, or delayed so that we could have a longer time together at the airport."

Maegan & Daddy

In case anyone thinks that I'm an overly-dependant wife and mother, I have to explain that since Maegan was born, we've been fortunate to have daddy with us, except for brief work trips of 5 days maximum. And if the five days fell on the weekdays, it was much faster to go through.

But the departure on Saturday morning meant an entire weekend of plans without Daddy, and plus he left on the morning of his birthday, which was significant to us because it's his big 3-0! I think it was hard for him to leave his family that morning too, and we basically felt bummed about the whole affair.

Maegan however was the strongest among us. She made good use of the 45 minutes we had at the airport running around. When it was time for breakfast, she happily waved to Uncle Ronald McDonald who was sitting plastic still at the chair. The pink balloon that was given to her made her day, and she smiled at every passing person, waving hello and goodbye.

When it was time to say goodbye to her Daddy, she gave her usual hug and a kiss, and with Daddy holding her tight, she looked up at him and waved.

And as we stood at the departure gate watching Daddy walk in, Maegan looked neither pensive nor sad (unlike her mother), and watched silently as Daddy made his way in (many waves later), before he disappeared beyond the glass area where we could see him.

I turned to Maegan and asked: "Where's Daddy?"

She looked at me and said: “Oooo?”

Then she did her usual hand gestures which indicated that he was no longer there.

That's how Maegan said goodbye that day.

How nice it is to be a child again.

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