Love Says "Talk to Strangers."

We’ve generally been taught not to talk to strangers.

But lately, I’ve been questioning the wisdom of this common teaching.

Having young children who are naturally friendly and interactive, it’s quite sad to experience them being ignored by people out in public.

Why are we ignoring each other?

It seems to me that a lot of it is just people being wrapped up in their own worlds, unaware of who is around them.

But then I’ve also had some interesting conversations about this issue too.

A kind older woman in the grocery store responded to my youngest daughter’s enthusiastic greeting; then she looked at me and apologized! She said, “She started it!”

I thanked her for responding.

We agreed that people are afraid to talk to each other . . .

And it’s making the world less safe!

The World We Want to Live In

In another store, a girl about the same age as my older daughter said, “Hi, what’s your name?” It’s exactly how I’d like to see children (and grown ups alike) making new friends!

The woman with her said she’s been trying to get her to stop talking to strangers!

Apparently, she thinks this is really dangerous behavior.

From my perspective, it’s much more dangerous for us to live in fear and pay no attention to the people in our immediate area.

Imagine a world where we receive friendly greetings everywhere we go. We look each other in the eye and give a smile and “How do you do?”

Love says, “Talk to strangers”

Sure, you may not want to have a heart-to-heart or take a ride in their car, but for the most part, exchanging a few pleasantries with people you meet is a great idea.

It fosters a culture of respect and awareness. It builds a sense of safety and community because you are connecting with people that you may need to lean on for assistance in case of emergency.

I truly believe that most people are good and decent. And even if you run into a shady character, displaying confidence and awareness makes you safer, not an easy target.

Of course, I highly encourage attentive supervision on little ones. I’m in no way suggesting that we leave our children unattended for any period of time.

But I am promoting the idea of making friendly connections with “strangers”. Are they really all that strange? Or are they simply people we don’t know.

Nurturing an open, friendly environment provides opportunities to experience our human unity.

It may be nothing more than a smile and a “Hello!” that lifts someone up who was feeling really down and alone.

Or, perhaps, you might actually meet someone that becomes a true friend and an important person in your unfolding adventure! Weren’t most of the people you know now once strangers to you?

Either way, writing as a representative of Love in the world, I encourage you to talk to strangers.

Sometimes we’ve been taught things for the wrong reason. Let Love, not fear, run the show.

Create A More Loving World simply by acknowledging the people who live near you.

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