Greetings

Have you ever tried to greet someone with a handshake and they go for a hug? Maybe you are the one getting ready to greet them with a hug and the other person goes for a handshake? In different cultures there are many different ways to greet a person. As well, due to the situation or person, the greeting can change. It was interesting to complete the worksheet about the greetings used in the country I will be going to. As I talked with some friends from Mexico to find out the different greetings of various situations I noticed that there was not one specific set way to greet a person in each of these different situations. They both told that the greeting could vary. The way to greet in each particular situation just depends on a few things. Some things that determined this were, how touchy the person was, how well they knew them, what their socioeconomic status was, and as well what their body language was showing the other person at that moment in time. These things would determine what greeting they would use in each of the different situation.

I am in a new ward here on campus and it has been interesting to see how I greet my new ward members, both the boys and girls. I find myself more willing to hug the girls when I meet them (even if it is for the first time), but I'm also noticing that some of the boys are greeting me with a hug. Thankfully their body language usually leads me to understand as we greet that a hug is coming, not a handshake. Isn't it interesting how depending on the person, the body language, and the situation or moment in time that these greetings can change? I believe there are guidelines in greetings that help us to more or less know what to do, but it is not until we find ourselves in the situation that we know which way we should greet a person. So more or less there are guidelines, but variations within those guidelines. It depends on the factors that were mentioned earlier.

Greetings are not always going to be done perfectly. I can learn the overall idea of what is expected, but what I do in that situation really just depends on multiple varying factors. Monday night I had just gotten home from an evening run and I was out on the lawn talking with my roommates. Two of their friends, whom I previously had met on Sunday showed up. Both of these girls are from Brazil. When I met them on Sunday I greeted them with a hug. As we were approaching the moment of greeting I found myself unsure of what to do. Both of my roommates were hugging them, but I was all sweaty and gross from my run, so I didn't want to hug them. I preferred to spare them the joys of smelling me. I also felt self-conscious that if I were to hug them in my present state I would feel gross. I was sweaty and stinky and they would see me as sweaty and stinky if I hugged them. Silly, but truthfully it is how I felt at that moment in time.

I could tell through their body language that they were expecting a hug so I tried to politely tell them that I had been running and that I was all sweaty and stinky. We didn't hug but rather acknowledged one another by standing near each other as we began talking. It was a little uncomfortable and I did feel that by not giving them a hug I was not helping to build up rapport with them. However, at that time it was what I felt was best in that situation. I am going to encounter many different greetings with multiple people as I go live in Mexico. There will be guidelines to help me, but each situation will change due to varying factors. Sometimes I will get the greeting right and at other times I might not get the greeting right. I believe that even if the greeting isn't done just as might be expected that is okay. It's a learning experience, not the end of the world.