You Can’t Always Say Goodbye, so Make All Your Words Count

The painful experience of a sudden end.

A sad young man writing a letter. | Graphic made by author with Canva AI.

Hi there!

Matthew couldn’t remember the words he said, even minutes after he spoke them. His father was following him down the hallway in the house where he grew up, screaming in anger about something insignificant. Matthew was screaming back.

Matthew was a 30-year-old man who was tired of the fight that had raged on between him and his father since he was eight years old. The two of them would never get along. Matthew wondered for a moment why he even bothered.

Matthew stormed toward the glass front door to leave his parent’s house. Just steps from the brass doorknob, Matthew heard a heavy thud. No one was yelling, and the sudden silence hit Matthew harder than his father ever had.

Teeth clenched, Matthew spun around to see what object his father had thrown, but it was his dad who was down, lying still on the thick carpeting. His was no longer arguing, no longer breathing.

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"It's not what you take when you leave this world behind you. It's what you leave behind you when you go."

- Randy Travis

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Scott Ninneman publishes two newsletters each week. The free Sunday All Things Bipolar Newsletter features the newest content about bipolar life. The Speaking Bipolar Positivity Club Newsletter shares inspirational stories three times a week to help you maintain a positive mindset.

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Life Changes in an Instant

In an instant, Matthew’s father and their decades-long fight ceased to exist. Maybe his dad got the last word, but it was also the last word he would ever speak.