Recently I discovered a shocking truth. This truth is that the movies have been lying to us for many years. When you watch a scene in a film in which a character is saying goodbye to their family, maybe they are going on holiday, maybe they are starting a year-long adventure or maybe they are leaving for good. Whatever the reason, there is always a lot of emotion from all the characters. There is the tearful mother, the girlfriend or boyfriend who wants one last kiss and the strong father figure who always has some meaningful words to give. All this, of course, is acted out with emotional music in the background.
This scene is a lie. Goodbyes do not go like this in real life. In my case, for example, I said goodbye to my family at half three in the morning, in the rain. I was leaving to live in Colombia for a year. I was tired, which meant that I was in a bad mood, and my back was hurting already from the heavy rucksack I had on which contained nearly all my most important possessions, with a little bit of space left for clothes too. I didn’t feel any strong emotions at all. I didn’t feel sad to be leaving my family behind, nor did I feel happy to be starting a great adventure, although I am sure it will be, I just felt tired.
In fact, the hardest part for me was saying goodbye to my pets! The poor things don’t understand the concept of Skype. I can talk to my parents whenever I want on Facebook, by email or on Skype, but my dogs and my cat won’t understand where I have gone or why. My greatest fear is that they will forget me whilst I am gone. My father drove me to the airport, we said goodbye with a warm hug, but there were no wise words or advice to be had, I was on my own. My mother, however, was crying when I gave her a final hug on the front steps of my house. So maybe, just maybe, there is some truth to the image Hollywood sells us after all.
Do you agree with Drew? Have you ever said a Hollywood-style 'goodbye'?
