Tameka Foster Raymond isn’t quite ready for her youngest son, Naviyd, to leave for college.
During a recent appearance on ESSENCE’s Mamas at Work, Tameka shared how she feels about her last child, whom she shares with ex-husband Usher, moving out.
“My heart is crying. I’m crying. I’m crying at the idea of Naviyd going to college,” she said.
According to Tameka, the 17-year-old has been working hard in his last year of high school and plans to attend college in Los Angeles.
“He is so excited about his future,” she said. “He’s planning to go to LA for college and he is excited. Trust me.”
His enthusiasm makes it difficult for Tameka to show just how much she wishes he could stay a little longer. She joked that she wants to ask, “Can we hold you back a year?”
Still, she wants to see her son move forward, even as she struggles with the thought of him leaving.
“It’s a bittersweet moment because you want to see your kids go to the next level and you want to see them, you know, progress in life, but it’s selfishly sad for me. I am definitely sad.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Tameka reflected on the loss of her son Kile Glover, who died at age 11 in July 2012 after a Jet Ski struck him while he was riding an inner tube on Georgia’s Lake Lanier.
“I’m still a work in progress. I won’t say that I have it all figured out,” she said of her grief.
Tameka explained that she remains dedicated to projects in Kile’s honor. Her clothing line, Eli Kish, takes its name from parts of his name spelled backward, while her Kile’s World Foundation helps children in underserved communities.
She has completed a children’s book in his memory, too, which she plans to release.
“I just try to keep doing things in his honor,” she said. “I’m just doing things that I think would really make him proud. I really do.”
