Hello. Yes. Hello to you

Posted on 06. Jul, 2009 by Sarah in General, Inspiration

As I was riding Sunday, I was reminded that how we as people have become so detached. What do I mean? Well, I am so glad you asked!

Whenever I am running or riding I always try to say “hello”, “good morning” or “hi” to the people that pass me. At least smile. Okay, I will admit that when I am gasping for air doing sprints, it is much harder to speak, but you get the idea.

So, as I was saying hello to people on my ride I was once again **surprised** at how many people said nothing or fell over in shock that a “girl on bike” actually said something. How sad!

Needless to say, I had a few hours to reflect on this sad trend. And also, how to change it. I don’t have any answers. But I do have some thoughts (well, even you knew that). What if we started viewing other people has REAL life? We live such a fake world.

A world that is run by iPods, Blackberry’s, virtual assistants, virtual this & virtual that. While technology is great (trust me, I love social media), it is also easy to turn a great thing into a bad thing. Don’t let this happen to you! Have a love for other people. Don’t limit your contact to people only via computer. Leave your iPod at home and let your “music” be saying hello to the people around you.

Make AND take a few minutes to actually talk! Novel idea I know. When you start to view people as LIFE, your life will be real. And maybe, just maybe the detached nation will be a friendly & REAL nation.

Photo by Oskay

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Tags: cycling, friends, hello, hi, life, real, riding, training

3 Responses to “Hello. Yes. Hello to you”

run4kelly

06. Jul, 2009

Hello Sarah,

Interesting thought. I have found in my own life as I follow people on Facebook, Twitter, blogs, etc.. that I am less likely to interact in real life.

Social networking is fun, but in some ways it leads to being more detached and less connected.

At work, it is a constant barrage of e-mails and instant messages.

Text messaging spills over into our personal lives, as a way to communicate without having to talk to each other.

I will say Hello to you this morning via leaving a comment on your blog.

Now I need to talk in real life.

Thanks for the thought!

Ross
Robby

06. Jul, 2009

I couldn’t agree more. I always try to ask the cashiers when going through the checkout lines if they are working hard… most just laugh and say “no”… Sometimes it is just that little bit of “personalization” that can help bring a smile to someone’s face or brighten their day. Maybe it is just the southern/Texan in me, but I try to live up to that “hospitality” fame… =)

Good article and hope you have a great day.
Annie Anderson

27. Jul, 2009

Sarah -

I absolutely agree. There used to be a thing called “common courtesy” but I am sad to say, it rarely exists anymore. In this of being “connected” we have become nothing but out of touch . . .

What a shame!

But we certainly can do our part, even if it’s small and seems insignificant, to say “hi” to those we pass. Besides that, it may just brighten someones day (after they get over the initial shock and wondering!) and maybe even encourage them to start doing the same to those they meet as well.

Thanks for a thought provoking post! And thanks for just a lovely website. My first time here and I’ll be back.

~Annie