Wednesday, August 11, 2010

So long, farewell, aufwiedersehen, goodbye

First of all, don't freak out, I'm not closing my blog or anything. I just wanted to talk about farewells. I have noticed that my friends differ on how they end telephone conversations with me. One friend was adamant about never saying "goodbye". She would say "see you later" instead even though we haven't met up in a few years. Other friends don't really say anything. The conversation just kind of fizzles into a "well...I'll talk with you later" or "enjoy the rest of your day" kind of deal.

It's not only an issue found in American conversation. In Germany, you can hang up saying "Aufwiederhoren" meaning "hear you later" or "Tshüß" meaning "bye". These distinctions are part of who we are, I think. People who don't happily say "goodbye" might be afraid of losing friends or acquaintances. I'm not sure, but I've noticed it a lot over the past few weeks. How do you react when some says "goodbye" to you? Is it fine? Are you upset? Do you say "goodbye"?

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