The Swiss have been making a fuss about their bankers' personal appearance and behaviour lately, and now I see that the Chinese are all set to teach their youngsters how to be respectful, putting good manners on the national syllabus, presumably with the assumption that their parents won't or won't be able to teach this themselves. In Canadian homes, schools and other environments the emphasis on this kind of education is well known, and it continues all the way up to adult level.
I called a friend about coming round for our Saturday supper followed by songs, and the very first thing she said in reply—in fact it's the first thing they all say—was "What can I bring?" Polite, considerate and kind, and it sounds so natural.
The trouble is, I never know how to answer that question. Is there a simple rule?
blending an assortment of thoughts and experiences for my friends, relations and kindred spirit
By Alison Hobbs, blending a mixture of thoughts and experiences for friends, relations and kindred spirits.
3 comments:
Ay, there's the rub. If there is a simple rule for responding to the request, "What shall I bring?", it rather implies that the question is not a courtesy but a formula.
I once remember an email from our Managing Director (not the present one) saying that he was shocked that people were meeting external customers while dressed shabbily and demanding that we all dressed better.
The irony was that that email, like many others he sent, was full of spelling and grammatical mistakes.
It really does depend on your priorities. Having said that, I think good clothes, good grammar, well-presented and attractive documents, etc. do matter. But the secret is for them to be so good they look effortless.
I always ask people to bring desserts or wine. Then it's less effort for me!
The formulaic answer to "What shall I bring?" is "Just bring yourselves!" but my generous Canadian friends have been known turn up with all kinds of goodies even so.
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