Rituals Of Respect

Rituals of Respect

You’re at your first gourmet restaurant and can’t imagine what all the utensils are for. Then you’re told there’s a certain order to using them. Why is the napkin folded that way? How many courses are there? You wait patiently, hoping you’ll be told what to do.

It seems that everywhere you go, something is expected. Business meetings require a suit and tie. You have to remove your shoes before entering certain homes. Men expect a firm handshake. Your elders prefer formal speech over slang.

It’s true that one reason good manners were created was to make the upper class feel important. But the manners that matter are those that make others, not you, feel important. So it’s wise to honor the rituals of respect, whether you’re dining with the queen or in your grandmother’s kitchen.

You don’t have to become a person of ritual, but loving people well means you will become a person of respect.

We are justified in enforcing good morals, for they belong to all mankind; but we are not justified in enforcing good manners, for good manners always mean our own manners. —G. K. Chesterton