Goodbyes suck. Sort of. So why do we say “good” bye?
Besides the fact that they’re usually on good terms, I think there’s more hidden in the sadness and grief that can come with a parting. In fact, pain means that something special is leaving.
I’ve had a few goodbyes recently, and there are a few that are around the corner. I cried thinking about them (manly tears). They hurt, to be sure. But there’s a kind of joy in them; a nostalgia, which is probably the better word. They are, in a lot of ways, actual “good” byes.
Goodbye… imaginary friends?
I love memories. Even as a kid I would just sit and experience the nostalgia of them. I remember listening to sad music so that I would feel the memories more.
The same feelings come when I finish a good book or a movie or a TV show. I like to sit and digest for a few minutes after a good ending, remembering all that came before that moment.
I might even say some figurative goodbyes to characters, places, or events in the story.
Stories have this special kind of power and usefulness. We’re in a theoretical world, filled with relevant possibilities. Our empathy puts us in hypothetical shoes, and we visualize ourselves in the world of another. The lessons may come in handy.
More than that, I think stories remind us of the good in the world and the meaningfulness of our lives. All of this was for something. It was beautiful. Purposeful. Valuable. I hate to lose it; I hope to experience more of it, or them.
Goodbyes, or the endings to the real stories of our own lives, do the same thing. All this was for something. There was purpose, beauty and value. I hate to lose it. Deep down, this person or this thing meant something to me, but also meant something beyond me. They are intrinsically valuable, even if I had never experienced them.
Honestly, it is moments like these that build my divine hope. A hope of heaven and many more goodbyes in a future eternity – but goodbyes that will only ever be temporal, knowing that those dear to me will always return, or that our paths will cross somewhere in the Universe. And, most importantly, a hope that I will forever know God and forever be satisfied in knowing him.
Corey Sleep 