Blog for March 9th, 2026
Goodbyes
Well, it was a busy, sad and painful week. Last Tuesday was my sister’s service. I am still processing the fact that she is not on the planet with us any longer, in fact, none of my sisters are. I am terribly sad about that. I hate saying goodbye. Now, it’s me and my brother, and I had to say goodbye to him when I left the reception because he was flying out the next morning to go home. He lives a very long way from me, about four states away. I always miss him.
I feel like life, at least my life, is full of goodbyes. People come and people go. I understand why my bestie moved so far away, she got married and they moved to his hometown, way up north, Portland. And then she moved again, a little closer, but too far for regular visits. So many people I get attached to move, die or just disappear.
We have a couple of long time, dear friends that still live in the area, but they quit coming to meetings or coming over to visit. I’m not sure why, it makes me sad. I know that the Covid pandemic time has had something to do with it. Especially one of our close friends. He is afraid to go anywhere, – still-it’s so sad.
Due to my back pain and all I’ve pretty much been hunkered down at home through the last winter months and I’m going stir crazy. I like to get out and do stuff and see my peeps. I’m hoping and praying the cold and flu season is about done, because we have to be careful and not let germs get to my husband, he has some serious lung issues, and it just wouldn’t be good if he caught anything.
I’ve had long time neighbors and now sponsee’s and my niece and others that are moving back east. I pray their new life is wonderful for them and their dreams come true. But again, I don’t like saying goodbye. I know we’ll just say, “see you later”, it’s never goodbye if your hearts are intertwined. But, nevertheless, they won’t be near enough for visits or lunches or going to meetings and events together.
At least I have my memories and my pictures, people get irritated with me for the pictures I take. But five, ten, twenty years down the road, if I share it with them, they are so happy and grateful. Even their kids loved the pictures and memories and are happy and grateful.
If you are in the program, any twelve step program, then you know all about the passing parade. They come, they go. Sometimes they have stayed long enough to take a little piece of your heart with them when they go. I tell ya, you really have to develop a thick skin around here in order not to fall to pieces every time someone you love and care about go back out and especially if they don’t make it back.
Sometimes, our goodbyes might be to jobs, homes, towns, committee work or something we have enjoyed having or doing. I have had a hard time letting go of cars, and old clothes, lol, I’m a mess. But that’s ok, those are things that helped to shelter me, cloth me or take me places, like meetings and others good places, like a friend.
I’m working on letting go of inanimate objects a little more freely than I have. I’ve been letting go of a lot of stuff. Lately I’ve been into the Swedish death cleanse. It’s really just downsizing, because I have too much stuff. I also read a lot of books, and when I finish one, I feel a little sad, because I have gotten attached to the characters in the story. Yep, I’m a dork. But I do move on to the next book.
But there are some goodbyes that I was happy to make. Like goodbye to drugs, goodbye to mean people I’ve known. Goodbye to my bad attitude, goodbye to Welfare, goodbye to poverty- and get a job! Goodbye to helplessness. Goodbye to manipulating and controlling behaviors. Goodbye to dozens of character defects.
Whenever we say goodbye to those defects, we can say welcome to the positive attribute that will replace them. When I stop being manipulative, then I become more open to other people’s ideas and ways of doing things, I find they have pretty good idea’s too, even better than mine sometimes! Lol.
But one thing I know for sure, when I say goodbye to a loved one that believes in Jesus, I will see them again. So, really it is indeed a “see you later” situation, yay! Thank you, Lord. And once again, everything does boil down to “Let go and Let God”, I really don’t have to worry about it, just feel my feelings, process and then, let it go.
Question of the Week: Is saying goodbye hard for you?
