Saying Goodbye through the words of Andrea Davidson
There is a poem in Andrea Davidson’s book Eggenwise, written as a letter to her mom, where she reflects on what it means to be both sad and happy to leave a place. These seemingly contradictory emotions run throughout the collection as she tries to make sense of moving to a different country and learning new words and meeting new people. It is, in many ways, a lot like what I am going to be doing next, though in a more metaphorical sense. I will not be hopping on a plane anytime soon or learning a new language, but I am very sadly saying goodbye to the home that I’ve made here at The Emma Press.
I am excited (and nervous) about starting a new job, and while it is what I wanted, it doesn’t make saying goodbye much easier. Andrea sums the feeling up much more eloquently than I ever could (reason no.1568 why I have loved working at The Emma Press: you meet brilliantly talented authors who write what you’re feeling but better). She writes,
it is so sad to be apart
even at the same time that it frees me
I am grateful beyond words for the opportunity that I have had to be a part of such a warm and supportive team, without whom I wouldn’t have developed the skills, confidence and knowledge that have helped me to make this next step in the publishing world. As the cliché goes, ‘knowledge sets you free’. While that seems to be the case, I’ll stay tied in some shape or form to The Emma Press even if just in my debt to the team, and Emma especially, for getting me this far.
Many things in my life have changed since I first joined The Emma Press as one half of Georgia’s maternity cover back in April 2022. I’ve left a job, started (and finished) an MA, and moved to London and back again. This role has been one of the few consistencies and for that reason, and many others, has provided a huge comfort. I’ve always found a kind of home in books, but it is typically a people-less one (empty of real people at least); so to have shared in this with other people, kind and caring and supportive booklovers no less, (though often virtually I will admit) has been quite special.
To everyone at The Emma Press:
Thank you for
making home even when we were far away.
Kyaice
Author
