So Long, Farewell

I hate saying good-byes. I hate them for many reasons, but the one I'm going to mention here is the fact that when it's time to actually say good-bye, I cry. (Obviously, this is for more long-term good-byes and not so much the "Hey, thanks for bringing back my DVD. I'll see you at church tomorrow!" good-byes.) I can't help it. And when I cry, my face crumples up, and even worse, I can't talk. And when I can't talk, I can't say all the things I'd want to say to someone who has been a very important part in my life and is now leaving. For example, while crying, I wouldn't be able to say, "Thanks for driving me to and from my GRE test when I was way too nervous to go by myself," or "Thanks for sending me flowers when you knew I was having a horrible week," or "Thank you for all the times you dropped by just because you were in the neighborhood," or "Thanks for coming over and sitting with me every day after my Lasik," or "Thanks for being the kind of friend who makes me feel like you value our friendship as much as I do." I couldn't say, "I loved watching Smallville every week with you, even though we both agree it's stupid!" or "I love that either of us can say one line from The Office, and the other can come up with the next line immediately," or "I loved that you didn't think it was lame to come over just to read Harry Potter." Heck, I couldn't even say, "I'm really going to miss you."

No, if I'm crying during a good-bye, pretty much all I can do is nod and say, "Ok. I'll see ya," and hope the person takes all that other stuff as understood.