May The Road Rise Up To Meet You

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
may God hold you in the palm of his hand.

An old Irish blessing.  Unbeknownst to me until I followed a new road of sunshine and warm rains to Bermuda, and met some lovely Irish friends who introduced me to this verse.  I have mentioned before how as expats our friends become family.  Friends become brothers and sisters who we lean on, confide in, and share hopes, dreams, and anxieties.  Through it all,

Tonight I hugged an old friend goodbye.  I am not sure when we will meet again  After 4 years of birthdays, Christmases, Thanksgivings, Friday nights, random events, many good time, a few challenges, suddenly tomorrow there will be a face missing.  It happens to us all, as expats.  People leave.  Continuously.  We all will leave.  When we leave home, there is a sense that it is temporary...that we will come back, or that ties will continue to bring us back.  But as an expat when you leave, you are really leaving, and your expat family moves apart in different directions.  You may meet again, but you will not likely get everyone together in the same place at the same time again.  Saying goodbye to one is saying goodbye to a group, a unique period of time that you will never again recreate or own.  I suppose every moment in time is like that, a haunting snapshot of a look, a smile, or a laugh that happens and then is lost forever in time.  I know that new paths and new adventures await us all, and tomorrow my friend will be on a plane and several hundred miles into a journey that takes him back to old friends and family who will embrace his return, as they too once said goodbye and didn't know for how long.  I am excited, as always for this next phase, but there is a heavy feeling tonight on that last goodbye...and I have few words so will simply say again...

May the road rise up to meet you (the right road will seek you out).
May the wind always be at your back (and give you speed and not deter you).
May the sun shine warm upon your face (and anywhere else you need a tan),
and rains fall soft upon your fields (on Sunday mornings whilst you rest).
And until we meet again (which i must believe we will)
may God hold you in the palm of his hand (be safe, be happy, be well...I shall miss you)