Today my youngest daughter leaves the house for 6 weeks. It will be the longest time that my wife and I won’t have a kid in our house since our first daughter was born almost 25 years ago. It really makes me question, ‘Where does the time go?’

On the note of time flying by, I have no memory of when I started this, but for much of their teen and all of their young adult lives, I’ve had a little tradition for when I see my daughters off. Be it for a trip like this or even for a night out. In addition to ‘Love you,’ I always say, ‘Be safe, be smart.’

The response I enjoy hearing is, “Always.”

Four simple words of advice that probably give me more comfort than they give my daughters, but they both receive the advice and respond with polite grace… and at this point in my life, I think they will be living in their houses with their own families and I might still keep this tradition going.

And for anyone out there that needs to hear it, as you head out of the house and onto new adventures, be it a night out or a trip around the world, let me share a little advice: Be safe, be smart!