((A sealed letter addressed to Ashling M'Govern, which will be handed to her father the next time Saila runs into him.))
A letter to his daughter
03.13.2016
Dear Ashling,
I wanted you to know that I will never forget you. I remember the times we had together fondly, and I will never be able to thank you enough for all the help you provided on my quest to Learn All The Things. You?re intelligent and interesting and fun to talk to. Hell, you?re a lot more intelligent and interesting that I am, that?s for sure. You?re brave, generous and kind. I will miss our conversations.
I?m so sorry that things ended the way they did. That I left so abruptly, that I?ll probably never get a chance to say goodbye to you properly or even ever see you again. If you hate me right now and burn this without ever reading it, hey, I get that. Who knows if he?ll even give it to you? He might burn it first, and I guess that?s fine, too. I just... In this one way, if nothing else? I wanted to be different. Break the pattern, or something.
So I want you to know that you matter to me. Whatever happens now or in the future, it--my departure-- had nothing to do with you. You were always a bright and welcoming flash of light in an environment that was completely foreign and at times totally overwhelming for me. You helped me make sense of it all, put things in perspective. I will always be grateful to you for that, and I hope that maybe one day I can somehow return the favor.
He told me probably a million times how much he hates this place, how he doesn?t want his children here. And maybe you?ll never find yourself in ?my? city accordingly, who can say? But if you ever do? I?m here, and I will be here for you. If you need anything at all (except maybe directions, because I suck at those), you can call me anytime, night or day, no matter what. I will find you, and I will be there. No judgments, no lectures or lessons, no questions even, if that?s what you need. (That last one will be hard, but I?ll try!)
I would like to think that under different circumstances, we would have been friends. Maybe, with time, we still could be.
Always,
Saila
P.S. -- I love him, Ash. Pretty sure I always will. How I wish things had been different.
A letter to his daughter
03.13.2016
Dear Ashling,
I wanted you to know that I will never forget you. I remember the times we had together fondly, and I will never be able to thank you enough for all the help you provided on my quest to Learn All The Things. You?re intelligent and interesting and fun to talk to. Hell, you?re a lot more intelligent and interesting that I am, that?s for sure. You?re brave, generous and kind. I will miss our conversations.
I?m so sorry that things ended the way they did. That I left so abruptly, that I?ll probably never get a chance to say goodbye to you properly or even ever see you again. If you hate me right now and burn this without ever reading it, hey, I get that. Who knows if he?ll even give it to you? He might burn it first, and I guess that?s fine, too. I just... In this one way, if nothing else? I wanted to be different. Break the pattern, or something.
So I want you to know that you matter to me. Whatever happens now or in the future, it--my departure-- had nothing to do with you. You were always a bright and welcoming flash of light in an environment that was completely foreign and at times totally overwhelming for me. You helped me make sense of it all, put things in perspective. I will always be grateful to you for that, and I hope that maybe one day I can somehow return the favor.
He told me probably a million times how much he hates this place, how he doesn?t want his children here. And maybe you?ll never find yourself in ?my? city accordingly, who can say? But if you ever do? I?m here, and I will be here for you. If you need anything at all (except maybe directions, because I suck at those), you can call me anytime, night or day, no matter what. I will find you, and I will be there. No judgments, no lectures or lessons, no questions even, if that?s what you need. (That last one will be hard, but I?ll try!)
I would like to think that under different circumstances, we would have been friends. Maybe, with time, we still could be.
Always,
Saila
P.S. -- I love him, Ash. Pretty sure I always will. How I wish things had been different.