No one likes to feel replaceable.
But think about how significant it is to leave such a lasting impression that you need to be replaced in the first place.
Some people are just passing through. They come into our lives temporarily and act as place fillers. They are not longed for before they arrive and they are not missed after they go. That is not to say that they are not significant to others, but not everyone can be significant to you.
Yet, some people leave such an impact that there is a gap to fill when they move on. (And everybody moves on). These people do not simply pass through. They appear and make themselves a part of your world, a puzzle piece that completes the picture. And when they go that space, that gaping hole, needs to be filled. This is not a replacement; it is a substitute. Because the next person that fills that space will change it, transform it, make it their own. No one can truly be replaced because each person is significant and every puzzle piece is unique.
We are transient. We come and we go, we ebb and we flow. It’s part of life. If we stayed in the same places in the same roles for our entire lives we would never grow. At some point we have to move on. We have to leave the 6-month internship where you felt invaluable. We have to let go of the two-year relationship that seemed irreplaceable. We’ve got to take a semester abroad for a change of perspective. But learning to leave these things behind is not bad, it’s not sad. Because even though someone else may fill those roles you once held dear does not mean you can or will be replaced. Letting go of those roles leaves space for someone else to learn from what you have experienced, and gives you room to experience and learn more. A new puzzle to fit into.
No one likes to feel replaceable. But no one is easily replaced. We are, each of us, significant in our own way.
