5.09 / September 2010

Etymology of Goodbye

To say farewell to you—

fare well as you make

your way from who you are

to who you used to be,

fare, a passage for which

a price is paid. Bon voyage,

good travel, travel safe.

To say goodbye, adieu,

adios, God be with you

wherever your atoms realign.

Leave-taking what you leave

behind, closets empty

of your clothes, furniture sold,

given away. Au revoir,

auf Wiedersehen,

to see you again someday.

To sign off, part ways—

to resign, relinquish, consign.