To Skype, With Love

Never easy to say goodbye

Photo by Engin Akyurt

I got an email informing me that Skype is shutting down in May 2025. Even though I no longer use it, I couldn’t help the wave of nostalgia that washed over me and broke into verse.

Dear Skype

You were there before the filters
before the stories and reels
when a pixelated smile
was enough to warm a heart.

Dial tones that sang
of distant lands
blue bubble blinking
like a heartbeat
as we waited
for faces to appear
across oceans and time zones.

We yelled “Can you hear me now?”
more times than we can count
as we froze mid-laugh
mid-tear
mid-goodbye.

You watched
long-distance lovers stay close
grandparents meet newborns through glass screens
and friends, scattered across cities
feel less alone.

Back when video calling
was still a marvel,
you were our window
to the world.

Now, you’re packing up quietly,
no fuss,
leaving behind echoes of late-night calls
and usernames we giggled over
and outgrew.

Thank you
for being the first bridge
between here and there.

We’ll miss your familiar blue
your shaky connections
your steady presence.

Goodbye, old friend.
You changed the world
as we knew it.

Vidya Sury, Collecting Smiles Did you smile today?

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