Siem Reap, Cambodia. 2018

Saying “hello” to goodbye is a constant in life. We always find ourselves meeting people for the first time, sometimes for a short period. We visit some places temporarily. Feelings come and go. Hello again, goodbye. You have the same consistency of time. The flow of your appearance is sometimes premeditated, but more often spontaneously consistent. You’re always around, sometimes lurking. You appear when you want, when you know it’s best. We are forced to acknowledge you. Sometimes we’re stubborn, but you are well aware of those moments. Yet, you don’t budge. With you, it is what it is. You’re blunt, yet sweet. You’re precious, because you introduce us to “new,” often. You prepare us and remind us that nothing is forever. You provide a dose of reality as often as possible, as often as necessary. You keep us awake, reminding us to savor moments. We love “hello,” but goodbye – you’re the one we appreciate most. Hello prepares us to enter and experience something new, and with you comes deep reflection. We are encouraged to practice gratitude. We need that. It’s critical to our growth that we’re reminded to be grateful for all things – the people we meet, the places we go, the things we do. We need you to paint a picture for us to see what was, and imagine what could have been. We anticipate you most when we’re experiencing things that are painful, failing to realize that you’re always right on time. We must go through all that we do, because we need those experiences to nurture our growth in preparation for what’s to come. Goodbye, you’re a genius.  If it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t have the emotional intelligence to depict our feelings that exist in this moment in time. The right here, and right now. We’d just take it all for granted. We’d express our feelings less. We’d never know what it’s like to savor something. We wouldn’t think critically. We’d fail to grasp time. We’d lose our sense of imagination. We’d be stagnant. Growth would mean nothing to us. Hello, goodbye – thanks for joining us, and for giving us hope.

We say “hello” to goodbye every single day, with each passing minute. Each tingle that flows through time, each thought bouncing through our minds. There’s much good in goodbye. There’s much power in the drama of closure: the end of a chapter, the credits of the movie; the exit sign, the period at the end of a sentence, the last minute of the day, a graduation, the arrival at the departure gate.

Hello again, goodbye. Nice to see you. Thanks for showing up, reminding us to practice gratitude and appreciation. Thanks for reminding us that nothing lasts forever. When given deep thought, you are the force behind the courage we’ve gained to do our best at living this human life.

There will always be unforgettable memories behind each goodbye, and we’re some of the lucky ones if we find it difficult to leave…

Angkor Wat Temple Complex – Siem Reap, Cambodia. 2018