Say hello or just walk away?

There are some people we would avoid at all cost, some we do not wish to be part of our loves even for a few minutes and it is not that category we are talking about here!

I can give a logical elucidation of what I should do, but really it depends on my mood- I mostly do not like to stop and say hello. People sometimes ask weird questions and depending on what is going on in your life at that time or how preoccupied you are about some thing, their questions might be annoying. And worst of all are people who you go up to say hello and they start asking you about some other common acquaintance or friend! And you're thinking, well, why don't you talk to them, but cannot because you don't want to be rude!

I do suppose I should give it a chance!

I almost always say ‘hello” but have regretted it at times. But plus is more than minus in my experience. That apart one does not loose anything by acknowledging by a hand gesture or a namaste or hello. People turning away or crossing roads does happen but that helps us in our future relationship with them.

After many yeas now we run into many of our school and college acquaintances as many of them would have come to settle down in our city as they have their roots here. Careers would have taken them elsewhere.

When we run into them and tho hypocritically we say to each other oh! You have not changed at all, still we feel happy. Immediately we connect or say shall see somewhere like this again if we don’t want to exchange mails or phone numbers.

No harm in greeting, but giving. Signal or taking the signal is absolutely important. Walking away is not a what shall I say good manners?

But then I wonder whether such old school thoughts hold good today looking around me.

I really like Heather's post! I could not agree more, sometimes we hesitate to acknowledge someone we may have known in the past, maybe as Heather says, for fear or rejection or past perceived opinions of that person. That jogs my memory for a similar story.

Sometime back I was at my daughter’s girl scouts meeting at a different school, not the one she goes to. Waiting in the main foyer, I saw a lady who was the recruiter at a company that hired me more than 10 years ago, but she had left shortly after. I hesitantly cracked a smile and she responded and paused in her step to ask where she knew me from. I shared with her that while I had been lucky until then to be with the same employer she hired me into, but there was an impending job search that I was terrified about. She was at the school for a different sports event for her son. She very graciously met me shortly after and helped get me started with my job search with guidance on the current job landscape and reviewing my resume and has kept in touch with me since! A chance meeting led to career advice and pursuing new opportunities!

This is a tricky one and more often than not, I end up making a U turn and getting out of there!! I do not see the point in chatting with someone I used to know esp. if I don't see a place for them in my life now. And then there are the Regina Georges (Mean Girls) from our past who we still put in that slot!

Maybe I should be a little more relaxed and open myself to the idea that not all are going to be weird or mean. Like @Heather Carson's experience I may end up making a new friendship with an old acquaintance.

I‘m ashamed to say more times than not I pretend I don’t see them and I really don’t know why ... hmm ... possibly fear of rejection that they won’t acknowledge me back. It’s silly because when I have said something I’ve almost always enjoyed the conversation that follows. In one experience I recall I was watching my son play in his high school soccer game and I noticed a lady in the stands who went to my high school and who wasn’t one of the regular soccer Moms, but I quickly realized her daughter must be a cheerleader when I watched her take out her phone to video the halftime performance. I mentioned to my husband she went to my high school and then we proceeded to figure out which cheerleader must be her daughter. He said go say hi, and I said NO. So he asked me why and my response was I don’t think I liked her, but I continued trying to think of her name anyway. Wouldn’t you know after her daughters performance she came over to me and introduced herself. We had a great conversation, FB friended each other and continue to comment on each other’s posts.

From my side, I think I make the effort to at least grin and say hello! Time constraints or just immediate pressures (turn in grocery line, child demanding attention, in a rush) may not allow for anything more, most times. But I have experienced where just the acknowledgement gets the other party concerned and they excuse themselves lest it develops into a conversation 😃. Anyone else agrees or does that happen just to me 😄