Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes’ daughter Suri Cruise is off to college, and I’m off to the store for a new box of Kleenex.

Tom Cruise in a pinstripe suit and pink shirt, smiling at an event. A man with white hair is partially visible behind him

Tom Cruise in a pinstripe suit and pink shirt, smiling at an event. A man with white hair is partially visible behind him

Katie Holmes at a formal event, wearing an elegant strapless gown and an intricate hair accessory. Tom Cruise is partially visible in the background

Katie Holmes at a formal event, wearing an elegant strapless gown and an intricate hair accessory. Tom Cruise is partially visible in the background
Jim Spellman / WireImage, Jon Kopaloff / FilmMagic

It seems like yesterday that TV starlet Katie and action star Tom had a baby. It was 2006, and Tom reprised his role in Mission: Impossible 3, and I had just graduated from high school.

Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise posing together on a red carpet. Katie is in a sleeveless black dress with a bow, and Tom is wearing a black suit with sunglasses

Christopher Polk / FilmMagic
It was the days of Tom jumping up and down on Oprah’s couch, and life was simpler.

Tom Cruise energetically jumps on a couch next to Oprah Winfrey during an interview on her talk show. Oprah looks surprised and laughs

Now, Tom and Katie are no longer together, Oprah no longer has a couch on TV, and that baby on the way has graduated from high school.

Tom Cruise in a tuxedo and Katie Holmes in a sleeveless black dress at separate events

After five years of marriage, Tom and Katie split in 2012.

Wpa Pool / Getty Images / Marleen Moise / WireImage
In a now private TikTok video shared to a classmate’s account on May 20, Suri hinted at her future college plans with “commitment day.”

Katie Holmes and Suri Cruise smile while posing together. Suri holds a microphone and wears a star-patterned dress with a red bow in her hair

Kevin Mazur / Getty Images
The 18-year-old graduate was overwhelmed with joy as she seemingly announced which university she would attend.

Group photo of a Broadway cast with five adults (one wearing a broad hat) and two girls posing together and smiling

Bruce Glikas
The TikTok video was captioned “LaG commitment day.” Suri and classmates wore sweatshirts announcing where they planned to go to college, and Miley Cyrus’s “I’ll Always Remember You” from Hannah Montana played in the background.

Katie Holmes, Suri Cruise, and Ben Platt are smiling together indoors. Katie and Suri are casually dressed; Ben is in a tank top and cap

While it’s not confirmed, Suri interacted with the camera, pointing towards her bright red sweatshirt, which had the words “Carnegie Mellon” printed in white.

Bruce Glikas
If you are a Dawson’s Creek or Risky Business fan like me, just know that Joey Potter and Joel Goodsen’s baby is their age and will be off to college soon.

Young man with short brown hair, wearing a casual shirt with red sleeves, looking towards the camera in an outdoor setting with greenery in the background

Young man with short brown hair, wearing a casual shirt with red sleeves, looking towards the camera in an outdoor setting with greenery in the background

Katie Holmes sits at a table wearing a casual, light, long-sleeve top, looking directly at the camera with a neutral expression

Katie Holmes sits at a table wearing a casual, light, long-sleeve top, looking directly at the camera with a neutral expression
Warner Bros / ©Warner Bros / courtesy Everett Collection / Everett Collection, Courtesy Everett Collection / Everett Collection / Everett Collection

Overall, Suri remains out of the spotlight, but in an April 2023 Glamour interview, her mom said she does love working with her daughter when she has the chance.

Katie Holmes sits with Suri Cruise and a friend. Katie is in white pants and studded boots, Suri wears a denim vest and ombre dress, and the friend wears a leather jacket

Lester Cohen / WireImage
“I hope she always does something on my films,” Katie said, talking about Suri’s involvement in her films Alone Together (2022) and Rare Objects (2023). “I always ask her. But both of those experiences came out of the same sense of what I love about our industry, which is, you have these projects and you become a family with people. And it’s this safe, beautiful, creative space.” Suri sang vocals in the opening credits of Alone Together and provided vocals for the Rare Objects.

Katie Holmes is wearing a black blazer with white buttons, a striped shirt underneath, and carrying a quilted handbag. She poses in front of a decorative wall

Katie continued, “So it comes out of love for me to include someone who I love dearly. That’s how I like to work. I like to have that kind of feeling. It was very meaningful to me to have her there, because she’s my heart.”

But aside from behind-the-scenes collaborations with Mom, Katie is balancing how much to “protect” Suri from the spotlight.

Katie Holmes at an American Ballet Theatre event in a black dress with intricate green and white textured detailing around the neckline

“What has been really important for me with my daughter, because she was so visible at a young age, is I really like to protect her,” Katie said. “I’m very grateful to be a parent, to be her parent. She’s an incredible person.”

Congratulations, Suri!

Even though you’re reminding me, time is flying by.