goodbye: part 1

Are they ever good..."Good"bye's?

Well for starters, they're rarely ever easy.

I've been reminded lately that I'm not the only person who has a hard time saying goodbye. I guess in some way, shape, or form we all do. It's one of the unifying emotions of our raw humanity and at some point in time, we'll all say goodbye to some place, person, house, or relationship. There are many more instances where a goodbye is necessary, but these in particular seem to be most difficult. And for me, there have been a few times in my life where goodbye's were harder than hard.

Some goodbye's are forced upon us, others we choose for ourselves. The ones forced upon us are the hardest, I think. But the goodbye's we choose to say are still emotional, especially for a girl like me who carries memories wrapped tightly in her heart.

After hanging out with young college-bound friends this afternoon, I remembered how hard relationship goodbye's can be. And believe me when I say I've been there and done that. Some people may assume otherwise, but they were never easy for me, especially when goodbye meant walking away for good.

Over the years I've talked to many people about their own relationship goodbye's...talk about a touchy subject - tremendo emotional. Don't hate my Spanglish, I'm a wannabe Cuban...blame Miami. But almost always with relationship goodbye's, you realize there are a ton of words left unsaid. And many people, if randomly surveyed, would probably say they wish things would have ended differently. But point is, they usually don't. There's so much invested when a goodbye is chosen that it's almost a miracle when goodbye's play out exactly how you'd like them to.

But just because they're hard, doesn't mean they should be avoided. Truth is, I think it's important for people to know that "good"bye's can definitely be "good" when you know you're pursuing what's best...bettering yourself or the other, or simply improving a state of being. No matter how scary either may seem, when you leave the known to embark on the unknown you trade comfort for new beginnings. And when being comfortable means not being stretched, it's definitely okay to leave comfort behind. I always like to remind myself and the people I care for that we're all in this together (pardon the High School Musical reference, I'm a Disney kid at heart), you won't be the first or the last person to do anything, and in this case specifically...you're not the first or the last who has chosen to let go.

And just because they're awesome, I was listening to this as I wrote.

to be continued...

:: victoria marie