Let's talk!

I haven't posted in a while.....again. I want to blog, I love to write and I like to talk about stuff, but you know, I don't particularly want to talk about me much, about what's going on with me. It's not that interesting, and I either sound whiny or boasting. But I have come up with something that I DO want to talk about.....good manners. "Oh brother," you might say to yourself, "who cares about that." Well, if you don't care about manners, then from what I've seen lately at my job, as a cashier with a VERY large worldwide discount store which shall remain nameless, you're not alone. It seems that manners are passe', people are definitely not teaching them to their kids, that's for sure. Now I have to insert here that I live in a very conservative, religion-concentrated city, and there are a lot of nice, friendly, polite people here....it's one of the reasons that I love living where I live, one of the reasons we chose this area. So if there are lots of rude, ill-mannered people here, I make the assumption that there are plenty of places where it's worse, much worse.

I have read different books and articles on good manners, and in this blog I will occasionally, maybe even often, quote other sources. But I will start today with my own feelings about good manners, after all, it is my blog. From my observations, true good manners come from a person's genuine desire to make others feel comfortable, at ease, and to show respect. Manners flow from kindness and goodwill toward people in general (and it used to be taught to all children at home and in school, along with other ancient relics, like good morals from Bible stories). Now, being polite (again, to me) is a different matter. Our society pretty much demands politeness from its citizens, at least in public settings, if they want to live and function within the society. You can be perfectly polite and still drip your contempt for another person. But if you're using good manners, you at least make the attempt to hide your ill-will, and slap a smile on your face and be nice. Personally, I prefer good manners.

Whether you agree with my definitions or not, it's a fact that society was just a nicer place when people used good manners more often. Yes, it can get a little ridiculous if taken too far, but isn't everything like that? So, I'm going to give a little free advice on my blog. Oh, I'll probably address other bees in my bonnet, but several times a week, I'm going to be giving manners lessons....short little tidbits about treating others nicely and with respect and dignity. I'll probably be stepping on some toes....including mine.