The ten steps I took to the car felt like the longest ten steps I had ever taken in my entire life! The noise my high-heeled shoes made echoed in my ears even against the call to evening prayer that echoed from the nearby mosque. All day, he had been writing down the activities he was doing for the last time. The only thought on my mind for the whole day was that we were finally leaving West Africa where we had lived for ten years! Many of our friends had come to say goodbye. There were many hugs and tears. I opened the car door and got in. The slam of the car door was the rude awakening to the fact that goodbyes were a reality!

As we drove to the airport, I looked out the window at the people walking the streets. Two boys were fighting on the side of the road but no one cared as they passed. A dog attracted by the noise of the fight outside its owner’s door barked furiously, running from one side of the yard to the other. We stopped at a stoplight and a boy came to the window to ask for money, his big innocent eyes scanning the inside of the car. Because my window was rolled up, I only saw his mouth move. My mind turned to lively conversations that I had had with friends of mine, whether people should give these children money or not. As the car drove away, I realized that I had just looked “through” the boy, my mind was filled with memories of Senegal.

The trip to the airport was long. I looked back at the city lights that were receding. “Goodbye Senegal!” I said in my heart as I swallowed hard, trying to hold back the tears. I took the tissue out of my handbag, blew my nose, and decided I had to move on. Change is inevitable and we have to prepare our minds for it, we have to deal with the blows!