The author (left) at her daughter’s wedding, walking with the veiled bride. (No Eye Has Seen Photography)

Last June, my daughter’s wedding announcement graced the pages of the New York Times. Emily, 20, and Michael, 21, were the youngest couple announced that week, and most likely for the entire year. Confession: I wasn’t thrilled.

This was not the milestone I had envisioned for my first-born during her sophomore year of college. But what do you do when you believe your child is making the wrong life decision? And if parenting is all about “letting go,” what happens when a mother is asked to do this earlier and faster than anticipated?

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And then my friend said something that took me by surprise. “You need to give yourself permission to grieve.”

“Grieve?” That sounded like an awful word to pair with a “wedding.”

“Yes. No matter how wonderful it is for her, you are experiencing a loss. Let yourself feel it. Mourn for it, and then you can move on.”