Remember to say ‘thank you’

One balmy afternoon I reached my apartment entrance with my hands full and my mind clouded and an aching body. A man who seemed to be in a hurry stopped by and held the door open for me to enter first. This kind gesture brought me so much joy. After a quick thank you, I began to smile that further calmed my noisy mind. There is something nice about holding the door for others and saying thank you.

While there are a few obnoxious, just plain rude people who pass right before you slamming the door, there are also gentle souls who hold the door for the next person. Some have the courtesy to say ‘thank you’, but most of them simply walk away without even a smile. We might use the phrase often among friends or guests, but how easy is it to thank a stranger who holds the door for you or a cashier at a supermarket, a chauffeur who drives you to work, a person who allows you to first enter or exit the elevator or a person who serves dinner at a restaurant?

At school, we were all taught to practise saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’, these two words seem to face a deficit these days. People don’t attach any importance to the gratitude or it just slips their busy minds. It is beyond etiquette. It is about goodwill and graciousness. A kind act can go a long way in spreading smiles. These unwritten social rules might sound trivial, but they go a long way in unlocking goodness in this stressful world that rarely sees a beaming face in the crowd.

- The reader is an Indian stay-at-home mother and homemaker based in Abu Dhabi.