florida is not the south. some will argue that it is, but i beg to differ. it is located in the south, yes. but the culture is not southern at all. not one bit. in fact, my little experiment on my run tonight proves just that.
i wouldn't consider myself a super friendly person when it comes to strangers, but i'm certainly not a curmudgeon either. i decided that i was going to smile at every single person i passed along my run route tonight. and while it wasn't overly crowded as usual, i probably passed at least 60 people during the course of my run. that being said, i made a point to make eye contact and smile at every single person. let me tell you how many smiled back without breaking eye contact.
two.
one other gentleman smiled, but he looked away and down at his feet while he did so. did i make you nervous? another man whizzed past me on his bike and i wasn't sure if i should count his "smile" as a return gesture because it kinda looked like he had the windblown lip flap face that somewhat resembled a smile. and all the others either looked at me like i was crazy or pretended like they didn't even see me. i mean, i at least thought i'd get a return smile from the man and his wife pushing the double stroller with twin girls. but nope. this isn't the south. people aren't warm and friendly to complete strangers. sad day.
my run was great though and i hope i made a few people's days by giving them a one-way smile. you just never know. i'm just doing my part to bring a little Jesus and southern manners to Tampa.
bekah
live unashamedly :: laugh uncontrollably :: love unconditionally.
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