One by one I have said goodbyes to friends embarking on their college adventures. Some leave in a week or so. Some leave in a few days. Some have already left. Of course, there are several categories of goodbyes. There are the ones where one person says “well, I guess I’ll never you again" kind of goodbyes. Then, of course, there are goodbyes to the people who really meant the most. There are those people that you could never express adequate gratitude or culminate the journey taken together into some climactic ending, whether or not the friendship will continue. It’s not a time of sadness. It’s a time of retrospection. I really truly think about what each friendship meant to me-- how valuable each person is to that time in my life. The moments that shaped the person I am today. The personal growth. The laughter. The unforgettable experiences. The jokes. The awkwardness. The times that I could not have written myself. How is it that every friendship can be so completely different? It blows my mind. Just thinking about how I was given the exact combination of individuals that I was given is almost too much for me to even grasp. The more I think about it, the more I realize that there is not one replaceable person. There is not a single other so-and-so in all the world. There never has been and never will be. It’s a sentiment I don’t think I could ever sufficiently convey. It is not a loss, but rather a tremendous gain. I can take with me these times, these lessons learned and in few cases these friendships. Even moreso, it gives me anticipation for what is to come. There are things ahead that I would never have expected because life is just as diverse as the people who live in it. I just know it. Right now I feel like that scene from The Office where Jim looks at that picture of himself and Dwight on a sales call and says, “Oh young Jim, I have so much to teach you, and tragically I cannot.” That is what it is. I feel like Young Jim. So here is to new beginnings. To memories. To holding lightly the things of this world. And to frienships.
Keep it Real
Sara Nicole
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