Fond Farewells

Week Forty – six: Sunday 12 – Saturday 18 August

I’m not good when it comes to saying goodbye. At the best of times I put it off as long as possible, but when it comes to saying cheerio to people I have come to know and love, and may not see again, I am not at my best.

I like to be around to see them off, not just say goodbye at some point in the last few days before they go, but physically be there when they depart. I always feel sad, a little empty. Or I did, until recently.

Dave and Sarah are an Aussie/Irish combination who came to Falmouth around the same time as my family and me, last October. They ended up in a house that Tim, a fellow writing student, also moved into. Hence I got to know them, first meeting them at a fancy dress Hogmanay (New year’s eve) party.

They set-up a samba club shortly after, an informal gathering where those interested could have some fun and learn some samba rhythms under the expert and enthusiastic guidance of Sarah, ably supported by Dave.

Before long there were fifteen willing students, myself amongst them, and a first gig as the eclectic mix of locals, incomers and foreigners began to gel into something resembling a band. Festival performances followed, along with a host of birth day appearances and a jamming session with a samba band all the way from Ireland.

Through it all I, and Toni and Kumali, got to know Sarah and Dave as people and as friends and found ourselves enriched by their presence, conversation and humour. They left last week, back to Eire, their time in Falmouth complete, and we three were all sorry to see them go.

But I consoled myself with the knowledge that I was lucky to have spent any time at all getting to know two true free spirits, with an attitude to life and living that was as spot on as it was refreshing to be around. I comforted myself with the knowledge that two people with a light such as theirs need to move on constantly, so they can shine their magic on others.

And so it was a fond farewell, and I’m sure I, and my wife and daughter, will see them again someday. County Leitrim is a calling …