Saying Goodbye

Saying goodbye is an interesting thing. Different cultures do it differently.

In the South, goodbyes can be long ordeals that start with a “Bye, y’all,” move to a prayer, and close with a blessing like, “Y’all come back now,” as the whole family stands on the porch waving while you drive to your house 10 minutes down the road.

The urban North tends to be almost the opposite. The fast pace of the city leads to fast goodbyes. When it’s time, people say a quick, “I have to head out.” And they leave. Maybe there’s a handshake or a quick hug if it’s someone really close.

While I’ve never lived in the Midwest, I’ve heard that a goodbye starts with a knee-slap and the phrase, “Ope, I suppose it’s time,” followed by standing by the door, chatting for another 45 minutes, and saying incremental goodbyes from room to room.

The Irish goodbye is infamous. This is when a person leaves a function without saying anything. One moment they’re at the party, and the next they aren’t. No one knows when or even how they left. Funny enough, this was my preferred goodbye until I married into an Italian family.

The Italian goodbye is the exact opposite of the Irish goodbye. It includes going to the don of the family, paying your respects, talking for another 10–30 minutes, several hugs, and a few kisses too. Plus, there’s the offer of a sandwich on the way out the door because, “You’re looking thin.”
 
1 Thessalonians tells us that the Christian goodbye is different too.
 
When believers say goodbye, it’s never final. It’s always only, “See you later.”
I love that.
 
This Sunday, we’re talking about saying goodbye. Every one of us either has had to, or one day will have to, say goodbye in death to someone we love. And when that happens, Christians really do grieve. Death hurts.
 
But we don’t grieve without hope.
 
This week, we’ll see how the resurrection of Jesus changes the way Christians face death, grieve those we’ve lost, and live with hope that one day every goodbye will be undone.