Are Goodbyes a Permanent Thing?

I realized that the reason I work non-stop is to keep my mind occupied. Today I decided to actually sit down and take some time to myself. 'Relax'

For those that know me, you all know this is a rare thing. Turns out.... I get philosophical, and think too much when I'm idle. Is it a good or a bad thing? I'm not sure.

Today I decided to catch up on some missed episodes of shows I enjoy watching. An episode of Army Wives in particular got me really emotional. A particular character said in so many words, "We've been lucky that we haven't been separated. We live the Army life, and at some point, we all have to go." In a different show a character said, Is Bye a threat? Someone responded, Why would you think that? She responds, because it's so permanent. Goodbyes are so permanent.

Every day we interact with people, and sometimes those interactions turn into amazing friendships. Whether they are close knit, or just acquaintances there's no doubt that we all change each other's lives in some way, shape, or form. The hardest part of friendship, is saying goodbye. But Change is inevitable, and we must do it in order to grow, and prosper.

Why does distance change the bonds we have? Why do we make excuses to hide the reality? Such as "it's the Army lifestyle, and it's something we deal with?" or "it's just temporary, and we'll be back in a few years" "I don't want to go, but it's a great opportunity"

Goodbyes begin with a few tears, a big hug, and a verbal contract that we'll still be best friends. We'll keep in touch and write to each other everyday.

Isn't it strange that we get so caught in the moment of our lives, and become blinded to the reality that there is a WHOLE WORLD out there waiting to be explored. Leaving isn't permanent. If we've learned a lesson from the people in our lives, I like to think we take a part of them along with us every step of our journey.

It's also strange that no matter where we live in this world, and no matter how different cultures may be, personalities never change. You will meet someone half way across the world that will remind you of your best friend, and someone that will remind you of your worst enemy. We don't have a limit on how many people we can welcome into our lives. We instead can strive to meet more people, and allow them to teach us more important lessons that we can take with us on our next leg of the journey. When it's time for us to say goodbye once again.

So... in my opinion, goodbyes are never permanent. If there's even just one moment in the future that makes you think back to any moment or person from the past, then it/they have never left. And even death cannot separate us from each other. The Good Lord above would never allow you to accept that thought.

Hawaiians say it best! They never say goodbye, they say A Hui Hou, Until we meet again! I'm sure other cultures and languages have their own phrases that mean something similar. If you know of some, I'd love to learn them. These words, I will take with me as we embark upon this journey into our new lives.