So, I offered. “Mummy, I’ll teach you.”

“Your father taught me to ride a scooter. I crashed into a temple wall.” “I wanted to drive to Mahabaleshwar alone once. Your grandmother said no.”

“Beta, I feel like I can go anywhere now.”

That text broke me in the best way. For 25 years, I thought I was protecting her. But watching her reverse out of the driveway without me? That was the most romantic thing I’ve ever witnessed. Because true love, in any relationship—parent-child, or between partners—is about letting go.