Have A Good One

Have you ever stopped and thought about what it means if someone tells you to have a good one? I wondered about that this week. I suppose it could mean many things. A good day. A good meal. A good sleep. A list too long to mention them all. Perhaps these salutations don’t even register with us. Similar to when we meet someone. We ask how they are. They ask how we are. Do we ever think about an honest answer to give others? Do we actually acknowledge when others answer us? Do we care? We hear them all the time and just return the same wish on them or, at minimum, some variation thereof, without further thought. It has even made me think about the last sentence in all my blog posts.

There is a story behind the fact that I actually stopped and thought about the aforementioned question. When asked why I had not posted a new blog this week I facetiously suggested to a friend what the highlight of my week had been and he suggested I write about that. I had thought about it but had resisted. You see, the highlight really was not a highlight.

Let me explain. My father died of colon cancer. So based on that I need to be checked out every five years. Make sure I don’t fall prey to the same dreadful disease. So I go through the process. And like I say the procedure itself is not bad. The twelve hours before hand are enough to make a grown man cry. I know. I was reminded more than once that what I was going through was nothing compared to child birth. Perhaps it isn’t. I have never given birth to a child. However I was there in a supporting role for all three of our kids. That should give me some knowledge.

For twenty four hours prior to the procedure you are not allowed to eat. The first twelve hours are survivable. That is when the fun begins. In a starvation induced fog, or it might have been all the jello I had eaten, I went to the local pharmacy to pick up a certain medication that is required to clean out the system. I could tell the pharmacist felt my pain. As I turned to leave he said to me; “have a good one”. The irony of that worked its way through my fog and I turned around and suggested that it would appear that I would have numerous good ones. He did laugh but I don’t think he will ever say that again particularly to anyone picking up what I had just picked up.

Through modern technology, particularly as it concerns emailing, social media, and other means of communication, we seem to have lost the ability to communicate. We are lost in a fog of trying to stay connected on a 24/7 basis. One on one, face to face communication has gone the way of the dodo bird. We seem to have lost the personal touch. Perhaps there are times we need to “disconnect” from all the gadgets in our life and get reconnected on the personal level.

Take the time to chat with others. Take note of how others respond when you ask them how they are. Become engaged. Become more curious. And when others ask you how you are respond in a thoughtful, honest way. And next time someone wishes you a good one stop and think what it actually might mean to you for that day. It might be interesting. It might put a smile on your face. In the meantime? Make it a good one. 