So Long, Farewell...

I don’t like goodbyes.

No, I really don’t like goodbyes!

They’re hard, sometimes tearful, and always have an element of the unknown. When will I see this person again? We say, “I’ll see you later”, but so much can happen between goodbye and hello. You never know when your goodbye may last forever.

Freshman year of college has come and gone, and as I sit here I wonder how any future semester can compare. The friendships I’ve made and renewed have been such a blessing from God. Class assignments have taught me more about who I am and what God wants me to be. But as they say, all good things must come to an end and so at 2:37 pm yesterday, my freshman year officially came to an end.

Tuesday was the beginning of goodbyes and yesterday those farewells continued. There’s such comfort in knowing you’ll see your friends next semester, yet that’s not the case as I try to decide in these next few days where I will be attending school in the fall. The unknown makes these past few goodbyes extra hard.

I try to imagine a world without goodbyes, and in truth I can’t even begin to imagine what such a world would be like! To think that the world God intended for us to live in didn’t include separation is almost beyond comprehension because this is all we’ve ever known. Having this perfect world snatched away by Satan’s lies must have been harder than any goodbye I’ve said over the past few days because the lives of the inhabitants of this tiny speck we call earth were at stake. How God must long for that day when He comes to claim us for His own.

I’m already imagining the reunions that will take place next August. I can hear exclamations of “I’ve missed you so much” and feel the embraces from friends reunited again. And in my earthly, simple mind, I can begin to imagine what the reunion of the children of God with their saving King will look like. Oh, what a day that will be!

But until that day, we continue to say goodbyes and thankfully quite a few hellos as well! Lots of each await me in Brazil and Michigan this summer which is why I’m inviting you to keep reading this blog. I can’t promise anything witty or profound, but I hope that you will be able to enjoy the continuing journey of a young woman as she seeks after her soon returning Father.

Until then my dear friend! (Nope, I’m not letting this count as a goodbye!)