[Nfbk] The Greater Courtesies

[Joey Couch]

"The Greater Courtesies"

Nineteenth-century American writer Christian Bovee once said, “The
small courtesies sweeten life; the greater, ennoble it.” Sometimes,
with the pressures and stresses of life, we might forget that in many
cases, the small things are the big things. The lessons of good
manners we learned as children—to say “please” and “thank you” and
“excuse me”—may seem outdated in today’s demanding adult world. But
politeness is never out of style, kindness is never old-fashioned, and
we never outgrow courtesy.

And it goes much deeper than polite words. As one commentator noted:
“Making people feel important is part of courtesy, so it’s important
to remember that whether or not people remember what we say or do,
they do remember how we made them feel. . . . Always be kinder than
necessary because you can never be too kind.”

Helping people feel respected and loved takes more effort and, at
times, more self-discipline than just remembering to say please and
thank you. But it’s the mark of a great soul.

This type of courtesy focuses more on how we make people feel than
just what we say to them. It springs more from sincere love for others
than from a mere sense of social obligation. It measures not the size
of the courteous act but the size of the heart behind it. A smile, a
returned phone call, a thank-you note, a word of congratulation on a
special occasion, verbal and nonverbal responses to those who need our
attention—even these seemingly small things, if inspired by genuine
love, can turn out to be the greater courtesies, the big things that
both sweeten and ennoble the life of the giver and the receiver.



-- 
Joey Couch
phone 606-216-8033.
email ki4vjd at gmail.com
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