Have you ever had to say goodbye to a dear friend, your parents, a cousin, your lover, or maybe even your pet?

That feeling of saying bye to someone because you know you won’t see him or her for some time really sucks. The worst part is the fact that you know that you have to say bye to them and there’s nothing you can do about it. You just have to stick it out while they're gone.

It’s strange because once they're actually gone, you begin to notice things that you didn’t before. You don’t smell their scent anymore—that might sound weird, but it’s the truth. You realize they’re not a part of your everyday routine. They don’t make you laugh every day, they don’t put a smile on your face every day, you can’t go to them for comfort every day, you find yourself missing a part of your life. A part of your life in which feels empty.

But before you didn’t have to say goodbye deep down inside, a part of you might not of truly appreciated what they meant to you. Sometimes it takes losing someone to actually appreciate what you had. Once that important part of your life is gone, it slowly hits you that you won’t be seeing them for some time.

Though, in the moment you feel sad, upset, depressed, distraught, lonely, or even mad, just know that it’s not goodbye—it’s I’ll see you later. Many days, many weeks, many months, and maybe even years may pass, but you will be able to see your special someone again. No one said that in the time in between them leaving and coming back would be easy. Because it’s not going to be. Which is why we can’t beat ourselves up about it, we do anyways because we're only human. It’s OK to feel several different emotions and not want to control them. It’s OK to let it all out. Because,for some time, you may be lost, lost in the sense that you don’t have that person you were close with to lean on every day.

Believe it or not, the time that you say goodbye to that friend, your parent, your cousin, confidant, or family pet, you find yourself as a person too. You build up this wall made of stone, made of the strength you have within. You build up all this strength simply because you have to, it’s a survival method. You shape yourself to a person that doesn’t rely on others as much anymore, a person that can handle being alone, a person that can handle space, and a person that can handle being distant from someone who is near and dear to their heart.

In the end, that person or pet in which you were missing so much will come back to your life again. You will be reunited and once you are, it will be as if no time was passed. It will be one of the greatest moments. Finally being reunited with someone you have missed for so long is like finding your favorite T-shirt that you lost so long ago and now you can finally wear it again. It fills your heart with joy, happiness, and comfort. So just remember, it’s not goodbye, it’s I’ll see you later.