As an ESN Volunteer, I could never imagine that my first assigned buddy would actually become one of my dearest friends. Little did I know that saying goodbye at the end of the semester would actually bring me to tears and leave me yearning, while also leaving a long-lasting impact on how I view friendships across borders and cultures.
From the first time I met Tekle, I knew I would want to maintain this friendship. By sharing late-night conversations, secrets, celebrating local traditions and exploring places through the eyes of a foreigner, I realised just how much I needed this kind of connection. She taught me the importance of small, everyday interactions and how to cherish every moment.
Even now that she is gone, I can still hear our giggles in every corner of my city. I still catch glimpses of our adventures and laughs, because even though I was the one showing her Athens, she was the one to make me fall in love with it all over again. I now understand how distance can strengthen friendships and bonds, not weaken them. European friendships, unfortunately, cannot be maintained through everyday meetings. But the positive side is that they can be built through deep connection and understanding – something no amount of distance could ever damage.
Beyond the fun, Tekle showed me how to be more empathetic and open. I learned to embrace our cultural differences and language barriers and how they can actually be a help and not a burden. Through this friendship, I understood what they meant by the Art of Saying Goodbye.
What I carry with me most is the certainty that some people enter our lives not to stay forever in distance, but to stay forever in meaning. Tekle became a living example that true friendship is not measured in kilometres, but in the way someone reshapes how you see the world and yourself within it.
This is the Art of Saying Goodbye: leaving space for gratitude to be louder than loss, for memories to be warmer than absence and for friendship to exist beyond borders.
