Saying goodbye to good friends

I visited Grass Valley for the first time since October. I bid farewell, at least for the moment, to Gordon and Camille Southam and their family. Gordon is moving to Louisiana, across Lake Pontchartrain, to take a new job. I am happy for him and his family; they have been dear friends to me. I hope it's not the last time I see them. I don't think it will be. Times change, and people's situations change, and we have to adjust to it. You can't expect things to stand still. I just hope that we can meet occasionally, and I know that we will still communicate. I really wish the best for them. I also visited The Union for a bit. That place will always be important to me, but it also is bittersweet and very slightly creepy to be there. It's proof that a former employer can never compete with friends and family. I did get to reconnect with good friends over there. I did like coming to Grass Valley. That place will always be home to me to an extent. It feels comfortable and familiar, like walking into the Southams home or into the chapel in Grass Valley. I get emotional when I think of those places. Those places were sources of great happiness and wonderful memories for me and for my family. Life changes, I think, and you can't really re-create what once was there. Maybe it's best not to. I left Grass Valley hopeful for the future. I have things going on in my life that will eventually put me in a better place. Times change, and it's important for me to change with it.