See You When I See You

April 1, 2015

My roommate asked me as I was packing up the last of my stuff if it felt like one of the craziest days of my life. I'd been to work, I was trying to get the house cleaned up and I was late to go to dinner with friends. I had to laugh because I hadn't even really thought the day was crazy.

I immediately thought back to a year ago - packing up another house. I thought about how much I've changed and how I've moved 5 times in the past year! Last year I was trying to pack up my house, put it all in storage, get ready for graduation, graduate, and sneak out early to catch a plane to Africa - that was a crazy day! (Almost as crazy as deciding to go to Hawaii the hour before we had to leave, driving as fast as we could to make it to the airport in 2 hours, buying a ticket on the way to the airport, and making it with time to buy breakfast!) Maybe I like my life with a side of crazy?

Then I started thinking a little bit about the moves I've had over the past 5 years! I've had some incredible experiences that I'll never forget. I've met so many wonderful people that have shaped my life forever. It's been so hard to say goodbye to all those wonderful people. I hate goodbyes. They're honestly my least favorite part of mortality. I usually don't even say them - I prefer to just disappear and hope that I'll see people again.

I realized this last time I moved that I've gotten better at goodbye. I wonder if the experiences I've had have taught me or if I've just grown up. Maybe a little bit of both? Living in Ghana and Israel this past year made me realize that there's a lot of people I may not see again in this life. Hopefully those people know how important they've been in my life because of my day-to-day interactions with them. But I now recognize how important it is to say goodbye and thank you for the influence people have been in my life.

This time when I moved, I didn't exactly disappear. I tried to see as many people as I could and thank them for their part in my life. I invited some of my nearest and dearest to dinner so that we could enjoy a few laughs before I left. I got organized enough with packing and moving that I was able to spend time the last few days having good times instead of stressing about moving. I also got rid of a little long overdue pride and accepted help from some angels who offered to help me move.

I still hate saying goodbye and I'm still not good at it. But now I'll at least say thank you for the good times and look forward to future adventures together. I love Jason Aldean's song, "I'll See You When I See You." He does an amazing job expressing how I feel about people and temporary goodbyes.

Let's don't say goodbye

I hate the way it sounds
So if you don't mind

Let's just say for now

See you when I see you

Another place, some other time

If I ever get down your way

Or you're ever up around mine

We'll laugh about the old days

And catch up on the new

Yeah I'll see you when I see you

And I hope it's some day soon

God made this whole world round

And maybe it's that way

So the paths we go down

Yeah I will cross again some day

And someday I'll

See you when I see you

Another place, some other time

If I ever get down your way

Or you're ever up around mine

We'll laugh about the old days

And catch up on the new

Yeah I'll see you when I see you

And I hope it's some day real soon

I hope it's some day soon

My time in Prove has been incredible. I've grown so much and been blessed by the people that have come into my life. We're all on our separate paths and have many journey, adventures, and miles apart but I'll see you when I see you - and I hope it's someday soon!