- Intermezzo -
'Sayonara!' the woman said as she walked out the door.
I was working the cash register of a small-town liquor store my parents used to own.
The time I spent here is a longer story to be told on another occasion, for now let's just say there weren't many Asian people.
Therefore, I couldn't muster any anger over her assumption that I was Japanese—she was simply acting out of an innocent ignorance.
'Adios!' I replied.
There are two ways to say goodbye in Korean, depending on whether you or they leave.
Ahn yeong hi gye sae yo. Ahn yeong hi ga sae yo.
The formal, used with those who you are unfamiliar with or are older than you.
Jal ee seu. Jal ga.
The informal, said to your loved ones or close friends.
But rather than goodbye, I have always heard this as 'take care' and this is, probably, a more accurate translation.
The times my wife and I have visited her parents in Taiwan, no tears have been shed when we leave.
However, reverse the sequence and the faucets flow.
I’ve been reading through the letters of Seneca, the ones mostly or entirely addressed to his friend Lucilius.
I notice that he ended each letter with 'farewell.'
I’m unsure if this was colloquial or if he meant it in the literal, Stoic sense as if each letter could have been his last.
Unironically, the last one was.
So long.
The last goodbye is the saddest one you'll ever say.
The day you lose your dog is the most painful one you'll ever have.
Take care, Kasper.
Jal ga.
Farewell.
