Growing up too fast

My kids just celebrated their birthdays in September. Riley turned 13! And Elizabeth turned 11. It's just so hard to believe that my stepkids are growing up so fast. I remember when I first met them. They were 6 and 8 respectively. They were children, with a child's view of the world. Now, they're on the cusp of being young adults. They are at that age where parents don't know anything. They're at the age where hormones are kicking in, and with the idea that they know everything they need to know.
I remember that age. When I was 13, I thought I knew it all. By the time I was 18 and took my first tentative steps out of the house and gained my first taste of independence, I was convinced I had the world by the tail. My parents knew nothing and I knew it all.
Now, here I sit at age 37. And the older I get, the more I realize that my parents were very wise people. They knew a lot more than I ever gave them credit for.
I amazed at what I'm privileged to watch. My stepkids are growing up and becoming young adults. Every day, I watch as they spread their wings a little bit more and gain their independence. They're growing up. They're growing up too fast.