Yesterday I said goodbye to some friends who were moving away – friends I was used to seeing on a weekly basis, and whose home I was in every other week. … Now I won’t see them for at least a few years.

This morning I was reflecting on that. 

I’ve said goodbye to many people in the past, mostly when they have left my town. But there have been a few times when I’ve left town.

At the time of saying goodbye there’s usually lots of business to attend to, other people trying to say farewell, etc. There really is no time to think and contemplate about leaving, about a goodbye.

The goodbye is also not equally the same for both those leaving and those staying. 

For the ones who are going away, they leave for something new, something different. Their leaving comes with an element of excitement, unknown, even nervousness.  

But there is none of that for those who are staying and are saying goodbye. Everything stays the same for them. There is just the loss of someone leaving.

It’s kind of like eating your favourite ice cream cone. (For me, that would be a scoop of Rocky Road ice cream on a sugar cone.) 

As you take a lick, a good sized piece of ice cream comes loose and falls to the ground. If you’re like me, you hate that because you want to eat every bit. You’ve be anticipating it; you’ve been savouring the taste of that ice cream. And then to lose a piece of it, it’s hard not to be disappointed. 

Ever thought of somehow licking up that ice cream from the ground even though it’s past the 5 second rule? 

The reality is you still have most of that cone to enjoy and to delight your taste buds with. You are only losing out on a small piece. … But still the thought of missing even a morsel of that favourite ice cream borders on a deep feeling of loss. 

The experts say that the world has shrunk with technology and with travel being so accessible, but that is merely conceptual. The reality is distance changes everything. 

I remember when we moved from Edmonton to Kingston. Two weeks after we arrived our son turned five years old. 

When we discussed with him what he would like for his birthday he said he just wanted his friend, Joel, to attend the party. 

Well, Joel lived in Edmonton, but Mike couldn’t understand why his parents wouldn’t just drive him over, or put him on a plane so he could be there for his big day. Mike didn’t make the connection that it took us five days to drive across the country, staying in hotels each night. 

So until someone actually invents the Star Trek transporter, distance will not been circumvented. When you say goodbye, there is an element of missing one’s presence that lingers.

Here’s the thing: Though we will say goodbye to everyone in our life, even if it is only for an hour, we never say goodbye to God. He is always with us, even when we move. No matter where we go, He is there. So don’t act like there is a distance between you and Him. Speak to Him regularly throughout your day. Don’t treat Him like He’s gone away. And certain don’t pretend like He is not there with you. With God you always say “hello” and never “goodbye”.

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: Who would you like to say hello to today? Leave your comments and questions below.