My needs are few:
It's never too late to be Great.
That young men always stand when a woman enters a room.
That young women not use the “F”-bomb in conversation.
That shoppers not push and shove to get the last roll of toilet paper.
That people show tolerance for others’ religious and political beliefs.
Sigh. Mom and Dad got many things right. The Greatest Generation handed us templates of civility that we have broken, or watched succeeding generations break, one after another. Does anyone know where we can get a deal on Gorilla Glue? I have to believe it’s never too late to be Great.
Fun fact: George Washington did not write the Rules. He copied them from an etiquette guide written by French Jesuits in the 1500s. Which made George not so very civil himself.
Susan BennetI'm so happy to have joined the gracious Retro family. The basics:
I have a background in marketing and museums.
I come alive when the leaves turn red.
I regret every tech mistake I have made or will ever make on this site.
I want a dog.
Characterizations:
funny, right on!
This is terrific, Susan, great rules to live by. One of my high school friends, Adriana, was from a wealthy Puerto Rican family, and when her grandmother visited, Adriana had to tell the boys in our group that they should stand when her abuela walked into the room. I remember that vividly and loved it.
Great story, Marian! At the last holidays I checked out my male family members, young and not young, to see what they would do. Happy to report, they were all stand-up men.
Thanx Susan for reminding us there once was something called CIVILITY!
I don’t think it’s gone, Dana, perhaps just intermittent….
It is good to be civil. I confess to breaking one of these rule myself, but do respect others. How we regain respect for others in these very unruly times? That I do not profess to know.
Well, my Catholic background encourages me to view difficult people as if they were Jesus. That tends to do it, though it’s hard. (Insert smiley face.)
Love this, Susan. It’s never too late in my opinion.
For anything!
I have come to believe that tolerance can be taken too far. The 1/6 coup attempt reinforces this belief in my mind. I cannot tolerate even the most sincere fascist.
One amazing generational change has been the extent to which Millennials and younger have moved away from our standard racisms and bigotries. Good on ’em!
Some say that it is fear that underlies our harsher judgments. I always imagine what ancient tribes thought when they saw “not us” approach on the horizon. Will they hurt us? Will they welcome us? Our global travel and communications over the past 100 years have shown us that we all have a heart that beats. Man does evolve for the better.