May 19, 2016

It's complicated

Goodbyes are painful. It doesn't really matter how you say it, or when you are going to say it. You might choose the perfect way to part ways, a sentimental card, a kind word, a heart warming hug, a farewell kiss, but nothing in the world can make the ache from a loved one's 'Goodbye' go away.

It is somewhat of an oxymoron, isn't it? How can there ever be any 'Good' in 'Goodbye'? I often wonder how we can be so sure that this is the end. Yet there are those tearful separations that coerce us into cutting our losses. We cross the bridge, reach the other side, and then burn it down so that we are never tempted into looking back.

Honestly speaking, the goodbyes that are left explained are the worst of all. You are left hanging on to an abyss. You wonder how someone could just leave from your life, all of a sudden. You keep searching for answers. You try to connect, and keep getting disappointed. It's like banging your head against a wall. Eventually you get numb to the pain.

I know the feeling. I have lost a few close friends that way, sans parting words. No emotional drama. No commitment. No promises. Relationships of pure convenience. When I think about them today, I wonder if their silent farewell was a gift of eternal hope--a pregnant pause filled with hope that we might just meet again and get things back in order, or was it an abrupt halt--an awkward exclamation mark to bring forth a harsh finality to an incomplete story.
Every unsaid goodbye makes our heart a little tougher.  It strengthens it with security armors--of hope, of courage, of resilience. Hope that is needed to sustain an endless wait, courage needed to bear the pain of the back stab, and resilience to bounce back despite the broken heart.


If we were never to see each other again, what would you prefer---a teary farewell, or a hopeful silence?

5 comments:

khushi said...

Would prefer Hopeful Silence..anytime . Atleast i will have hope that our paths might cross again and we get to meet again !

Cheers
Khushi

umashankar said...

Sometimes after a day, relationships need the still of night, an interregnum, an oblivion. There might yet be a dawn. Or not.

Pri said...

@ Khushi
I can understand. Sometimes, it's only our optimism that keeps us going. Love!

Pri said...

@Umashankar
Hmmm...breathing space. I guess we all need that at times. But how much is too much? :)

Pankaj V said...

Every story has an end and every thing has a reason. It's good to say Good Bye sometimes so to keep the memories alive and happy. The Good thing in Good Bye is to say Bye to things if they are not working out rather then try to drag them and may be at one point of time you'll be able to find the reason behind the Good Bye !