Coping with a sad goodbye
and we have to face a sad goodbye. If not higher education, then marriage or babies, travelling or working overseas, joining the navy etc. You already miss them terribly, before they’ve even left! You may feel depressed and despairing at the looming loneliness or empty part of your life that lies ahead. Depression is actually a way of accepting reality, so then you can move forward. Even though you will keep in touch, the intensity of friendship will not be sustainable: being far away, or they (and you hopefully) experiencing new things. Just remember that you were witnesses to a part of each other's lives and so you will be special, in some way, to each other.
Take the time also to do new things to help you move on from a sad goodbye , and develop relationships with other people - my own mother started doing volunteer work once her children left home, as she needed to be busy with people around her to cope with the loneliness. New friendships take time so start building them now - but don't neglect that person leaving. It’s good to challenge yourself to find more friends because in any good relationship, you can find yourself getting lazy with meeting new people, because you don’t ‘need’ them. Everyone enriches their own lives with more experiences (both the people leaving and those staying behind), and these can still be shared. Make sure you keep in touch, so you won't be missing out.
|
