One of our pastors has been encouraging us recently to be more inventive in our methods of greeting each other, rather than resorting to a nominal (and rather boring) "Hi". He began by pouring forth that he wished that "the hooves of a thousand camels may bless your fields". My friends and I found this rather an amusing and diverting thought. A good friend demonstrated her amusement by texting me in the middle of my busy nursing clinic to wish that my "needles be always sharp" and that I "receive a hundredfold patients forever". I wasn't sure whether that was a blessing or a curse at the time and so, with a smile, text her back (knowing she's a busy housewife) blessing her with "the joy of a thousand ironing board covers upon her head".
This rather fun attempt at elaborate greetings actually set me thinking about greetings and whether actually they are forms of blessings. Why? Well the simple "Good morning" greeting originated from the rather more lovely "God give you a good morning". "Good day" from "God give you a good day". And so on. I'm sure there are more. It set me to thinking how when we greet someone we have the opportunity to bless them too.
I'm not planning to run around greeting people with completely illogical greetings every hour of the day - I might get myself consigned to a loony bin if I do. But I think I'll be paying a little more attention (at least on the inside) to what I greet people with and what blessings I might be bestowing with the greeting. So perhaps I should call it a "Bleeting".
