Summary

Destiny S. Harris reflects on the decline of casual social interactions, advocating for the continuation of simple friendly gestures like waving and saying hello to strangers, despite societal norms increasingly discouraging such behaviors.

Abstract

In a thought-provoking piece, Destiny S. Harris shares her personal enjoyment of waving at people and the positive reactions she often receives. She contrasts this with the modern societal norm that views such behavior as taboo, despite the acceptance of similar interactions in transactional contexts like ride-sharing services. Harris argues that the digital age has led to a decrease in in-person social interactions, resulting in a generation that is technologically savvy but socially and emotionally less adept. She emphasizes the importance of maintaining human connections through simple acts of kindness, which she believes are essential for a society that risks losing its social fabric. Harris encourages readers to engage in what she calls the "triple threat" of social interaction: waving, smiling, and saying hello to strangers, suggesting that such gestures not only brighten others' days but also contribute to one's own well-being.

Opinions

The author enjoys waving at people and believes it to be a positive and friendly gesture, despite being labeled as "creepy" or "old school" by some.
Harris questions why waving or saying hello is considered inappropriate when paid interactions with strangers, such as ride-sharing, are deemed acceptable.
She expresses concern that the rise of digital interactions is leading to social impairment and a decline in social and emotional intelligence, particularly in younger generations like Generation Alpha.
The author suggests that the societal shift towards digital communication may negatively impact collaboration, communication, and the ability to solve world issues.
Harris is optimistic that some individuals, including herself and other "90s babies," can still thrive socially and maintain the value of in-person interactions

Oh, how the times have changed…

Shocker: I Enjoy Waving At People!

#Reflection on our current culture.

I like waving at people.

Call me creepy. Call me crazy. Call me old school. My significant other even makes fun of me for waving at people. But I love waving at people and telling them “Hello” with a bright smile on my face. Sometimes I even wave again if the person doesn’t see me wave (maybe this is the creepy part?).

What Happened?

Why has waving at people (among other things such as smiling at someone, introducing yourself to your neighbors, or going out of your way to talk to someone you don’t know) become such a taboo?

We literally get in people’s cars every day, and we don’t even know these people. But somehow, Uber and Lyft have made this okay — despite this being everything our parents warned us against growing up.

Society has made it okay to interact with someone you don’t know if a monetary transaction is involved.

Money has made stranger danger safe.

So, I can pay someone I don’t know for a ride, but a free “hello” is deemed creepy and inappropriate.

Despite people finding it creepy that I wave, smile, and say “hello,” to people, I will continue doing so. Because over 50% of the time, I get a lovely wave back, and I can tell my triple threat interaction (wave, smile, and say “hello”) has positively impacted and added a bit of sunshine to that person’s day.

The Digital World & Generation Alpha

In today’s world, we continue to become socially impaired because of the increase in our digital interactions and the decrease in our in-person social interactions. As new generations come into being, like generation alpha, we are becoming masterminds of technology but neophytes at social and emotional intelligence. As we progress in such a fashion, collaboration, communication, social/emotional intelligence, and solving world issues will be negatively affected.

From shorter attention spans to the gamification of education, from increased digital literacy to impaired social formation, these times impact us all but transform those in their formative years. Generation Alpha began being born in 2010, the year the iPad was launched, Instagram was created, and App was the word of the year- and so from their earliest years, they have been screenagers. — McCrindle Research

Generation 90s

In the meantime, some of us 90s babies haven’t been completely tainted by the digital age and will continue to thrive socially in a radically changing world. So call me the creepy smiley lady that says “hello” to people she doesn’t know, but you will always need people like this, so you don’t forget what was once considered a normal thing to do — that people actually enjoyed witnessing.

Try The Triple Threat Today

Wave
Smile
Say, “Hello” to someone you don’t know

It may not only brighten someone else’s day but yours as well. And if the person you try the triple threat on doesn’t respond so kindly, at least you gave out some positive energy, which still counts. As a society, we don’t always have to expect something back. It’s okay to give without a return; these are the best and most genuine types of givers, and the world needs more of these.

Destiny S. Harris is a writer, poet, entrepreneur, teacher, and techie who offers FREE books daily on amazon. Destiny obtained 3 degrees in political science, psychology, and women’s studies. Follow Destiny @ instagram, facebook, destinyh.com, mailing list, or join Destiny’s tribe.

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