This morning, as I was about to enter the bakery to get my
daily baguette, a young boy ran past me and into the shop. He asked for a
baguette, handed the clerk a 5 euro bill, took his change and darted out of the
bakery. The clerk looked at me and shook her head. “Il est entré sans dire
‘bonjour’, il a pris sa baguette et il est parti et il n’a dit ni ‘merci’, ni ‘au revoir’. Les
enfants ces jours-ci!» (“He came in without saying ‘hello,’ he took his
baguette and left but did not say ‘thank you’ or ‘good-bye’. Kids these days!”)
I suppose that worrying about kids and their lack of manners
is universal – and the older I get, the more I worry.
The incident made me think of a list that I saw recently at
Matadornetwork.com. The list was: 11 ways to humiliate yourself in France France ,
go to: www.matadornetwork.com/life/11-ways-humiliate-france/
)
I have gotten better about being sure to say ‘bonjour’ no
matter whether it is at a shop, a box store or a social gathering but I am far
from perfect. For instance, the other day, when my American friend Ray was with
me, I could not find something in the grocery store, so I stopped a clerk and
asked where I would find X? He stopped and said ‘Bonjour’ and after I replied
with my own ‘bonjour’ he took me to the aisle where X was located. – and yes, I
was embarrassed. I am most often guilty of failing to say ‘bonjour’ to everyone
at a social gathering. If there is a roomful of people, I will often say
‘bonjour’ only to the host or those close by…
A little civility goes a long way. It takes almost no time
at all and shows a level of respect that we have lost or have forgotten.
And if you think I have bad French manners, think about the
kids these days!
