Day 27: Au Revoir – OneRepublic

Saying goodbye is hard. One of my first major goodbyes I ever had to say was to my best friend in third grade. She told me toward the end of the school year that she was going to move away. I was heartbroken, because she was the person I was closest to, and I felt like if she left, I wouldn’t have anyone to talk to or play with at recess. My whole life was going to change because she wouldn’t be there anymore.

When you say goodbye, something changes. Something that was there isn’t there anymore. Whether it’s as intense as a death or simply a move across the state (or across the country, which can be a little bit worse,) the rhythm of your life without that person, or animal, or thing will change. There’s a piece missing.

Someone who used to be very important to me moved away suddenly a few years ago. We don’t speak anymore, and it’s for the better, but when that was happening, it was one of the most difficult times of my life, because I knew that honestly I’d probably never see them again. Looking back, I realize how huge of a blessing it was that they moved away. But it still disrupted my life, my thought pattern, my emotions.

Goodbyes change things.

Day 27: Au Revoir – OneRepublic

OneRepublic recorded their third studio album “Native” in various studios around the world. “Au Revoir” was fittingly recorded in France, where frontman Ryan Tedder learned the phrase, which is one of the ways the French say goodbye. The song itself is a realization of a couple who wakes up one day and realizes they’re not who they used to be.

Today I’m not myself
And you, you’re someone else
And all these rules don’t fit
And all that starts can quit
What a peculiar state we’re in
What a peculiar state we’re in

It’s hard to realize that something in your life isn’t right. It’s easier to live in blissful ignorance, to pretend everything’s fine. But you can’t ignore it forever, and usually the only time you recognize it is when it’s too big and problematic to ignore. That’s when something has to break, and usually not for the better.

Let’s play a game
Where all of the lives we lead can change
Let’s play a game
Where nothing that we can see, the same

This couple finds themselves at a crossroads. What would happen if we changed our lives? Would that mean that we’d no longer be with each other? They have realized that they don’t see eye-to-eye anymore, and it’s become a problem. Now they’re trying to imagine life without each other.

But we’ll find other pieces to the puzzles
Slipping out under the locks
I could show you how many moves to checkmate, right now
We could take apart this life we’re building
And pack it up inside a box
All that really matters is we’re doing it, right now
Right now

A decision needs to be made – is this going to be goodbye? Or are we going to fix this? A lot of relationships come to this crossroads when it’s too late. I listened to a sermon lately that talked a lot about picking your battles. Sometimes small things aren’t worth a fight. You just need to let them go. And when a fight does arise, you can’t think about it as you against your partner, but you and your partner against the issue.

“Au Revoir” gives us the sense that the couple is in the process of figuring out what to do. It’s open-ended – we don’t get a finite answer. That’s how goodbyes are sometimes. We don’t always know if it’s a goodbye, or a see you later.