Saying goodbye is not an easy thing to do. You know that you can still be in contact with your friends and family thanks to technology but you know that it won't be the same.

I remember saying goodbyes many times in my life :

• When I was 3-4 years old and left my home country to live for one year in France
• When I had to say goodbye to my brother and sister when they left our home country ivory coast to go pursue their studies in Europe.
• When I had to leave my country and people I mostly knew my whole life because of the civil war that started in ivory coast 
• When I had to travel for the first time abroad on my own 
• When I had to say goodbye to one of my best childhood friends who died on the operation table at the age of 20...

And so on and so on...

You can prepare yourself as much as you want, saying goodbyes are not easy. It is a piece of you that goes away and reminds you of a special time in your life. Whether it is good or bad.

How to cope with saying goodbyes?

I'd say: just embrace it.

It is a great reminder that life goes on. You shared some special moments with people that have played a big role in your life but it cannot always remain the same way forever.

It is a great exercise to learn how to adapt to new situations quickly.

That is also the reason why traveling can be the best experience as the worst experience of your life. Letting go of people who shared a special part of your life you will remember forever is not easy. But the good news is that the day you will meet face to face again, it will feel like you just saw each other the previous day!

To all the people experiencing this today, know that you are not alone and that over time it will get better.

Farewell to my friends starting their new life adventure. It is a new chapter of our lives starting again.