How y’all doin?
When my boys were young they used to ask me if I knew everyone that I offered a greeting to or “speak to” if you are from this part of the country. They couldn’t understand why I would do this if I didn’t even know the other person.
This might be “hello” to a person you pass by on the street or raising your hand to another driver that you meet on the road or perhaps even a nod of your head as you walk past someone. These simple acts of greeting are as natural to many folks as holding a door for another to enter a building.
The phrase “How are y’all doing?” or the more modern “How’s it going?” is just a way of being friendly in the south. We really do not want a dissertation on your health or really need to know how your life is progressing or which direction you are taking.
We have just been brought up to be friendly to other people that we come in contact with. We aren’t really trying to be nosy or up to anything. We just think a smile is a good thing to pass along to another person.
While on vacation a few weeks ago on the east coast of Florida I found that old habits are hard to break. While passing someone on the sidewalk or even in the aisle of the grocery store I still want to be friendly to other people and offer a greeting to them.
It’s really difficult to move over to let someone pass by you on a sidewalk and not even acknowledge their presence. To not have the greeting returned seems rude to the person offering, but maybe some people just do not feel that it is necessary to reciprocate a greeting from a total stranger.
But as for me I will keep “speaking” to folks I pass on the sidewalk, drive by on the streets, or simply come in contact with standing in line at the grocery store. Being friendly and offering a smile to a stranger is such a small act and you never really know when you could really make a difference in another person s life.
So next time an unfamiliar face asks “How are you doing?” just smile and respond with “Good, and how about you?” and “speak” to a stranger that you come in contact with.
Randy Garrison is the general manager of the Hartselle Enquirer.
