Do you speak to strangers? Yes, most of our parents warned us about speaking to them, but I truly believe if more of us spoke to strangers, the world, or just our own neighborhoods would be much more pleasant environments. I know it might sound corny and like something from “Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood,” but I enjoy saying, “Hello,” “Hi” or “Good morning” to people with a smile on my face and in the tone of my voice. Have you ever noticed how most children, even before they can walk or talk, are so eager to say hi and wave their hands vigorously until the person(s) they are saying hi to responds? Though that might be kind of creepy if adults did that, the simple gesture of saying hello and being happy to see and greet a person you do not know is cool to me.
Something I have been doing for the past few of years is making a conscious effort to greet people and hopefully brighten up their day for even a millisecond with a cheerful “Good morning!” Interestingly, many people are in such a rush and don’t even look up from texting while walking to say hello, not that friendly and grumble back a response or just prefer not to even be bothered and avoid eye contact so that they do not have to even acknowledge the person attempting to greet them. Regardless, I am going to keep on saying hello because as Will Rogers said, “A stranger is just a friend I haven’t met yet.”
All the best,
Tanya
Journey of Anonomz 
I agree, Tanya! I talk to everyone, everywhere I go. Though not everyone reciprocates, I do find that most people tend to be friendly right back, too. I think it just makes the day seem brighter to smile, say hello, and chat with others. Never stop trying!!
Hi Gina, it’s wonderful to know I am not the only one who enjoys saying hello to others. Sometimes I find that people who may be grumpy or in a bad mood tend to lighten up a bit when they are greeted with a friendly hello, so I will keep on trying 🙂
Where I grew up, in a small rural town 8 hours from here in the mountains, everybody did say hi to everyone. My dad would get into conversations with strangers in the grocery store and on the street. It really was a big culture shock moving here where people are too rushed to be friendly. It’s in my nature to say hey. I really appreciate your positive post.
It is great that you were able to grow up in an area where people were friendly and everybody said hello. That was actually on my criteria list when my husband and I were looking to purchase our first home a little over a year ago. I am happy to say that most of the people I have come in contact with have been friendly and will even stop and chat when Quinn and I go on our stroller walks. We even had a neighbor give us a baby’s first bible for Quinn as a gift when she was first born.