The Shadow-gloom and Weight of the Sacred

I'm a sentimental person. I like memories. I like to take pictures. I like to journal. I like to remember things. I like to reminisce. Perhaps it is not a surprise that I do not like goodbyes. Of course, who does? I've never met anyone who said, "I just really enjoy telling people 'bye.'"

My last few days in Vienna were filled with a lot of sentimental memories. As I wrote in my last post, I went to my favorite Imbiss my last night in Vienna. In many ways, my time in Vienna begins and ends with this Imbiss. The first day of our team's survey trip back in 2005, we parked our rented cars on Webgasse and stopped at this Imbiss for lunch. I got a döner kebab, and we all strolled down Mariahilferstrasse occasionally stopping in a shop--Mariahilferstrasse is a shopping district with a lot of stores, both corporate and locally owned--but more than anything just taking in the city. We walked to Museumsquartier where we had a meeting with an elderly Christian couple who had worked for decades in Vienna. It was an enjoyable time for me to be with my friends, my teammates, and it's something I often thought about during my time in Vienna. A simple little memory that carries with it so much meaning for me: I consider this the beginning of my Vienna experience.

Last Wednesday, my last night in Vienna, I went back to that Imbiss and ordered a couple of döner kebabs--one for me, one for Gretchen. Then, I didn't walk all the way to Museumsquartier, but I did walk a good distance back to the hotel in which we were staying our last three days in Vienna. It doesn't mean anything to anyone but me, but it was something I had to do. Or at least, it was something I really wanted to do. Now Vienna is gone, and I am sad, but I am excited as well because I know a new chapter in life is opening for us, and that makes me happy.

I think people like that: we like things to end up where they began. It's a sense of closure that is important to us. When things come full circle, it feels complete and that's important. It's the best way to say goodbye.