“Hi Daddy”
by Matthew Klam
from the October 14, 2024 issue of The New Yorker

This is, by my count, the third time we’ve gotten a story from Matthew Klam in The New Yorker. I’m sad to say that I don’t think I read the other two, but I’m hoping to do a better job keeping on top of new stories this year, so I’m excited to finally get to know his work a bit.

Here is how “Hi Daddy” begins:

My daughter was going on a trip to Europe that she’d been dreaming about for a year and planning for months, with the boyfriend she’d dumped and then got back together with a few weeks earlier. Lucas was already over there with two friends, and as we drove to the airport I had the feeling that her flying alone across the dark, empty ocean was practice for her real departure, to college, a month from now.

That’s a bit too close to home for me. My oldest is a senior in high school, and I’m not looking forward to that “real departure,” whenever it comes. Perhaps this story will help me? We’ll see!

I look forward to your thoughts below!

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