One of the most challenging things about this place is the
goodbyes. It’s part of the rhythm of life here and whilst you anticipate the
dates, it doesn’t make saying those goodbyes any easier. The summer is a
particularly challenging time for the lived community as people come to
volunteer for short periods of time and can have a huge impact, and then there
are goodbyes to the people who have lived here for a year or more.
There are things about living here which are hard to explain
to those who’ve never experienced the intensity of it. The impact a small group
of people can have on your sense of yourself, your personal growth and
professional development is astounding. The ways that I see the world have been
challenged again and again this last year and whilst there are people I have
shared experiences with who I will probably never see again, there are also
those I know will be some of the closest friends I have for years to come.
It’s strange to anticipate another year here without all of
the volunteers I have shared this last year with, especially now that every one
of the people I started with last October have moved on to their next adventures.
Nevertheless, I know that the people I share this year with will also challenge
me and make me think in new, unanticipated ways in the weeks and months to
come.
So is it goodbye or farewell? We talk a lot about the
importance of the language we use and frankly, regardless of whether you call
it a goodbye or a farewell, it’s still difficult to close out on those
relationships and move them to long distance ones. It’s hard to say goodbye and
I have found that small pieces of my heart have fractured over the last few
weeks. The fractures are adding to the pile I already have for people who are
and have been important to me so far in my life. Regardless of age, there are
people that have come and gone in my life who have shaped me and they may have
been family members or friends or even people with whom I’ve had small
conversations with in a train station in the middle of nowhere.
We open ourselves up to feel connected and loved and to
engage in deep and difficult conversations but there is always an impact. There
is always a goodbye to come. If we don’t open ourselves up, if I don’t break
down some of the walls that surround me then some of those deep and lasting
relationships won’t happen. We are encouraged to be open-hearted and to let
people in and that requires a lot of trust individually. The experience sucks
you in, chews you up and spits you back out changed and grown. Along the way
there is life, love and laughter, as well as conflict and tears, and then relationships
that don’t have to end but change when we say farewell.
After the farewell is the welcome. We have to wake up as ready
as possible to welcome new people and to open ourselves up to new
relationships. To have new and exciting times with people and to have a
different experience of love, life and laughter and connect with a whole new group
of people with the same level of open-heartedness that we welcomed the previous
groups. In our daily lives we experience this all the time, if less intensely,
and I relish the fact that I have the opportunity to pause, commemorate and
ready myself for the time to come.
So thank you for those who came, for those who are here and
those who are yet to come. Welcome to all and farewell to those who have moved
on. I will miss you.
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