"How lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard." Wise words from a children's fictional character, Winnie the Pooh.
Life gives each person many hellos and goodbyes. Hellos are bright and full of hope. Goodbyes are melancholy and empty. Whether it is death, relational troubles, or distance that separates, goodbye is always one of the hardest things to say.
Recently I have had several encounters with this word goodbye, different types of goodbyes, but each and every one has left an incision on my heart. These people have come into my life and left their memories entangled with mine. And for whatever reason, they're no longer there to share in them with me. Where there once was, no longer is. This is what makes saying goodbye so empty.
I am not the only person who struggles with saying goodbye. We all want people to stay with us. We don't want to be left behind or left alone. When we trust people, it's so hard to let go. Our memories hold us captive and our thoughts run through our head reminding us of them. We want them to take us too. But our paths have separated. Maybe not forever, but for now. This is what makes saying goodbye so final.
Not knowing when or if they will return gives your mind some type of false hope to hold onto. While the hope can be good for your soul, it keeps you on the edge of your seat waiting for them. You should not stay, rotating your mind around them. This is what makes saying goodbye so difficult.
Because goodbyes can be so sad, we should enjoy our hellos, our here and now, our future. Have hope for those future hellos and cherish those you have right now. Many people either live in the past or are waiting for the future instead of living the present out. It is great to have goals and plans for the future but if the present is neglected, there will be regret in your relationships.
The best way to handle goodbyes is by saying hello, being involved in the moment, putting down your phone, and picking up a conversation. The person may not always be here but the memories will be. Make memories now, and then, when it is all done and over, you may have sadness, but regrets should not stain the memories made. Stop being afraid and be alive. People will come and go, but how lucky are we to have made a connection that leaves a mark upon our souls? We all are blank canvases and people we love are able to leave a piece of them on our canvas. And our hearts are made up of pieces of other lives who have touched us, who have become a part of us. The people who leave, wherever they went, took a piece of you too. Goodbyes will forever leave a mark, but in the end, our hearts have traveled so far by those who have left but taken us too. It is comforting to know that a piece of me goes with you and you are never fully gone because the piece you have left me with. I am lucky.
