Greetings Friend!

Bună dimineaţa!, salaam alekum, saat shri akal, sawadee kah, shalom, namaste, and a very good morning!

Every culture has its greetings, each with its own nuance. What they have in common is a form of words that acknowledge another person's humanity. Even a passing greeting has value in recognising a fellow human, and it is certainly insulting when no return greeting is forthcoming.

It is much like the poem a lady sent to me earlier this week: not only was it a poem of warmth, love, and compassion, it was a morning greeting that is meant to be shared. As I opened my morning mail, there it was. It said 'greetings friend!’

We can feel disconsolate when people ignore us, although they may not intend the insult. They may be too wrapped up in themselves and their own problems to even notice us. If we can raise ourselves out of our own self-absorption to greet someone, then the greeting does not simply affect the recipient: it also helps the person who utters it.

Thus when we greet God at the start of the day it takes us out of our shell and enables us to celebrate His world. It reminds me of the verse by the Rev Eli Jenkins, in Dylan Thomas' play Under Milk Wood:

Every morning, when I wake,Dear Lord,
a little prayer I make,
O please to keep Thy lovely eye
On all poor creatures born to die.....
We are not wholly bad or good
Who live our lives under Milk Wood,
And Thou, I know, wilt be the first
To see our best side, not our worst

By greeting God at the start of each day we open our minds to a consciousness of the divine and invite Him into our mundane world. There is a Yiddish proverb, which says: 'The best guide is the heart, the best teacher is time, the best book is the world and the best friend is God.'

According to Judaic tradition, as is similar to our Anglo - Catholic Daily Office, immediately upon awakening, even before washing your hands, you should recite a personal prayer of thanks to God, as a greeting at the beginning of the day.

The Judaic prayer reads: Modeh ani lefanecha melech chai ve-kayam she-he-chezarta bi nishamti bechemla, raba emunatecha- 'Let us give thanks before You, living and eternal King, for having restored our souls to us in mercy. Great is your faithfulness.' Amen

Greetings Friend! I hope your day will be as wonderful as mine!

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