07.07.07
Auf Wiederzein
Several years ago when almost everyone in my social
bailiwick began to disperse to universities or other parts of the globe, a
friend complained and asked me, “why does everybody have to go away?”
“They just have to, they just do” was perhaps the most pertinent
response to his question, but saying that out loud felt rather unsympathetic
and it certainly would not have made him feel any better. So I just fell silent
and whispered, “I’m still here.”
Through the years, we watched more friends go their own ways,
and he remained, I remained, too. Some
of the partings wounded me, some perplexed me, and there were occasions when I
somehow felt glad for the departees believing that every goodbye mingles loss and fresh freedom for them. Yet through
all these, because of the reassurance that he remained with me, other people’s
departures seemed less painful… and after a plethoric amount of farewells, he
may have been able to answer his own question considering that he never asked again.
Now the time has come for him to leave…
and I don’t have to
ask why.
I know he just has to…
…and that doesn’t make me feel any better.
