I had the opportunity of being a day camp director and eventually the supervisor of other day camp directors. Day camp for some of the kids was a joy, the reason for summer, for some it was a mandatory experience because parents worked, and for others it was a difficult task. I believed as counselors we had a responsibility to help each camper feel as comfortable as possible and although the reasons for coming to camp varied there was at least one thing all the kids had in common; it was their name. As part of the day camp staff orientation we would play the hello and goodbye game. Using my own name it would go something like this, “Hi, my name is Gerald, I use the nickname Gerry and if you happen to write me a letter (this was way before email, in the dark ages), you should make sure you spell my name Gerry, not Jerry, and because my name is spelled with a G does not mean it is pronounced Gary!” If there was anything I owned it was my name, and how a camper said his/her name also provided some insight as to how satisfied they were with this piece of wealth. Once my counselors went around the circle asking everyone to say their name, the next step was to make sure they said hello (camper name) at the start of day camp, and goodbye (camper name) at the end of the day. I believed that acknowledging someone by actually looking at them and saying hello or goodbye not only proved for them that they mattered, but the person saying both greetings had to take the time and look at the other person.
My gym is located about 12 minutes away. I walk there and often times the 12 minute walk seems like an adventure in wonderland; not the fairy tale version, but the dark sinister tale as if Stephen King would write it. Often times I have to zig or zag to avoid someone texting on their phone so we do not collide. Often times I act amazed that by my zigging or zagging they seem appalled because my quick movement to not bump into them made them auto-correct the last word they texted. Living where I do I se many of the same faces walking on Santa Monica Boulevard, going to the same gym as I and just as often it is as if we all are strangers and the idea of saying hello or goodbye is as dangerous as growing a bucket of water on the Wicked Witch of the West!
I am frustrated that we are living in a nation where one political party so far has embraced men and women who would rather find the differences in all of us and who never take the time to acknowledge what we have in common. I am frustrated but not surprised because the Republican presidential primary candidates are symptoms of a society where the words hello and goodbye no longer exist for fear that by saying them we might notice we really are the same. We all come into this world in unique and special, but we live in a world where we share very common goals and needs. How difficult would it be to try and hone in on hello and graciously say goodbye!
