No Quiero Decir Adios

Among the members of my class I have a few who are new to our school, and two that are new to our country. One student in particular is from Bolivia. He speaks minimal English, but man does he have this amazing drive and potential. I believe that of all of my students, of course, but this little man is just a pleasure to attempt to communicate with. In my out of practice best impression of a person who knows spanish, I have been able to tell him where the bathroom is and where to go in case of a fire (And no, Dept of Ed, these are not in our standards. Take that). He can label our state on a map, play place value math games, and, and this one I love, he finally mastered my name (which, I have to say, is not easy for native spanish speakers). His mom and baby sister came to back to school night, and at the end they had me pose for a picture with the family. His strides in just 2 weeks were so marvelous - even he sensed his accomplishments and showed his pride through his smile and adorable fourth-grade puffed up chest.

I have grown attached to this one - perhaps because when you are trying to mime "Where are your library books, you need to return them here," you become connected in a Helen Keller and Teacher sort of way.

I found out yesterday that our new family is moving back to Bolivia. I'm not sure of the exact reason, perhaps the pressure of a single mother in a new country with two little kids and no money... who knows... but all I do know is that my Bolivian friend is leaving. And today I found out that his last day is tomorrow.

How do you express sorrow and well-wishes in mime and broken spanish?