Number Three: Greetings

Picture yourself walking down the frozen foods aisle at Wal-Mart; here comes John Doe.  John went to your high school, and you were once in the same cabin on a retreat to some camp somewhere, but you’re by no means BFFs.  What do you do?  Do you awkwardly wave as he walks by?  Do you stop and awkwardly start peering into the ice cream freezer (even though you’re on this aisle to buy frozen French fries) so as to avoid the awkward encounter?  Do you stop and say “Hello!” and nothing more?  Any of these three decisions would fly in the US, but NOT in Rwanda.

Now, picture yourself walking down a street full of pedestrians going about their business.  On the other side of the street you see John Doe.  What do you do?  Well, if you are in Rwanda, you had better stop and greet him!  A simple “Amakuru!” across the street may suffice, but really you should cross the street and greet John Doe (or Jean Bosco or John Isaac or Jean Pierre or Jean Baptiste or Jean de Dieu) properly.  A formal Rwandan greeting consists of a hug, a kiss to the left of the face, then to the right, then to the left again, and finally a handshake.  I suppose you could just give this man a hug and a handshake.  Or at the very least a respectful handshake (where you grasp your right elbow with your left hand while shaking his hand).  Then ask him how his news is and how his family is.  Okay, now, you can go back about your business.

Greetings are very important in Rwandan culture.  I am greeted with hugs, handshakes, and kisses every time I go anywhere.  While it seems like quite the hassle to greet all 20 people when you arrive at a party in such a lengthy manner, it’s quite nice to be acknowledged by others.  I think deep down inside of all of us is a desire to be recognized.  Now put yourself in John Doe’s shoes.  Wouldn’t it feel nice to be greeted in the frozen food aisle; to know that you made at least a small impression on someone; to feel special because that quasi-stranger from high school remembered your name?  Now, how about perfect strangers?  Granted, someone might think you are quite strange for giving him or her the time of day, if only because it is counter-cultural.  But, don’t you think it might make some people’s days if they were merely acknowledged?  If you recognize someone today, I challenge you to acknowledge him.  Go ahead, make his day!