Blogmas Day 11 | Hellos and Goodbyes | Reddit Secret Santa 2021 Finale
Life is full of hellos and goodbyes.
I remember about 7 1/2 years ago I said more goodbyes than hellos. I said goodbyes before, but they did not leave me feeling so sad. I miss the familiar faces of my colleagues, supervisors, co-workers, and students. During my last days, the reality of not seeing these familiar faces anymore soaked in. What hurt me most was the thought that I will miss them more than they will miss me. To them, I may just be another person. One of my students, who constantly would ask me what time it was because he was eager for it to be time to go home, hugged me on the last day, and that assured me that was not entirely true.
Then, I moved and met new people. I said more hellos than goodbyes. Sadly, some of these hellos are those hellos where you get acquainted with each other for 2–3 seconds and then forget each other’s names and never interact again. On the other hand, when you continue to interact, these hellos become the start of new friendships. Although a small part of me miss all the people I have said goodbyes to a few weeks ago, I will not grow as a person if I do not distance myself from the old and familiar and welcome the new and unfamiliar territory of my life.
Sadly, nothing is permanent. Over time, these new friendships may fade as we go…
