My husband Ray always teases me about my “goodbye” etiquette based on my Texas upbringing. He is fond of pointing out that I am often the last person to leave a gathering, including a funeral where I might start a conversation with the men just about to fill in the grave after everyone has driven away. (Okay, yes, that did happen, but only ONCE.) He also loves to say, “Len is that person who after a dozen goodbyes, then turns to the host and says, “How are you feeling about your mother’s struggle with cancer?” Ray says he’s learned to just walk back inside, find a chair, and settle in until that conversation is over.

The list below pretty much sums up a Texas goodbye. However, when I was growing up, there was always a final line after friends were in the car and were about to drive away. They would look at all of us (8 when everyone was home) and say, “Come go with us!” As if we could cram 8 more people in their already full car. Of course, the real sentiment was that we were having too much fun to let the evening end and we just needed to keep it going by heading over to our friend’s place.

My little brother Sam is well known in our family for calling out, “Come go with us!” just as he’s about to leave.

As for watching out for deer, well, if you are driving on a Farm to Market road in rural Texas, then that’s just sound advice.