Like every good song, even goodbyes have a bridge. It compares and contrasts and prepares us for the return of the verse and the chorus. Did you know the bridge is also called a release? So fitting. You know when you are listening to a really good song, then you hear the bridge, shake off a few more distractions, and only then you are ready to really listen to the chorus again?

A few days before Julia left, the bridge began. There was tension and anxiety. There were urgent items to take care of and important emails that needed answering. I just wanted to sit and really enjoy my girl, but the angst we were all feeling wouldn’t let us. It played out like a loud garage band playing at 9:30pm in the basement. There were drums beat out of rhythm and two lead singers competing for the solo.

We said goodbyes, we picked up my parents at the airport, and Julia and I waved goodbye as we set off to Virginia.

As I’m typing this, I realize it’s one of those full circle moments. It was just us as she came into this world. Yes, others were in the room and held my hands, but there was a cord that connected just us. I’m so incredibly thankful that my parents and Brian held down the fort so that I could go on this journey with my girl. Just us. One more time.

It wasn’t smooth. Dragging fifty pound suitcases through the airport, a rental car that had the wrong name, rain, and a very late night created a wobbly suspended bridge that we had to navigate.

But like every good song, the major chords swell. The circle of fourths find your ear and you close your eyes to hear the harmony.

But don’t worry. We did it. We made it across the bridge into beautiful country. We sang songs from my college days at the top of our lungs. We ate comfort food and found beauty.

{To be continued…}