Don’t Say Goodbye to Saying Hello
Saying hello is saying yes to life.
© Joyce McGreevy
Meeting & Greeting Across Cultures
In a New Yorker cartoon entitled “How to Clear a Space at a Crowded Beach,” a man says hello to all and sundry. His cheeriness so horrifies New Yorkers that hundreds collectively retreat.
Oh, I see: Some people like saying hello. Some people give hello the heave-ho.
In Galway, Ireland, (pop. 258,000) passersby often say hello to one another. Nothing fancy, mind you. A quick tap of the second syllable and you’re on your way. In Istanbul, Turkey (pop. 15 million) a local who said hello to passersby would prompt a puzzled reaction.
Yet people in both cities are notably friendly.
Does higher population density = fewer hellos? In New York City, saying hello to your neighbors in just one square mile would take you 2 weeks, 4 days, and 16 hours.
How Do You Hello?
...
