The normal reference to personal hospitality are the courtesies extended to visitors and guest in your home. Our belief is that meaningful actions and gestures of hospitality are those demonstrated to friends family and even strangers on an everyday basis.
With the increasing stress of everyday life and the influx of technology as our primary way of communicating with each other, the referred to actions and gestures are more important and will be a moving force to unite people in our nation and even in our world!The most disarming action can be a passing smile with anyone you encounter as you go about your daily life. Tensions, for whatever reason, can be eased or melt instantaneously when a genuine smile is exchanged between two or more people. A smile is something we all possess but do not use as much as we should.
The performance of unexpected favors for neighbors and friends can make them feel closer to you and certainly raise your own feelings of self worth and self esteem! There are too many examples to list. The elderly that live among us are good ones to “target” for assistance and help and it does not take creativity to come up with ways that will make life easier for these “senior citizens.” Depending on their degree of self dependency, hospitality gestures may even involve elements needed to simply allow them the grace of being able to live independently if they have chosen to do so.
Hospitality from a gender standpoint are the myriad of things a male should exercise when accompanied by or in the presence of females. Yes, this is basic, but it is the basics of hospitality that seem to have dwindled and are no longer set forth without hesitation. Opening and holding doors for a lady, helping them load luggage in the plane overhead compartment, lifting grocery bags from their carts to their car trunks etc. are a few examples. Others are standing when a lady enters the room, offering your seat if none are available on public transportation vehicles etc.
Hospitality and respect are intertwined. One of the most disturbing examples of disrespect to others and especially someone addressing an audience is a ringing cell phone. Hospitality is turning off those cell phones and devoting your undivided attention to the individual addressing the audience. Actually the hospitality, respect of converse disrespect in the cell phone case extends to the entire audience as it is disruptive!
Hospitality to others on an everyday basis is just a matter of being aware of your surroundings and those people you come in contact with. Accommodating their needs, some tangible and some intangible, is the foundation for being hospitable and showing love and respect to your fellow man! Our individual need for hospitality depends on our physical, financial and family situation. These needs can be readily interpreted by those who care for others and respond by performing actions and gestures to those in need!
Barbi Snyder is a regular contributor to this site and had a myriad of positions in the hospitality industry over a 35 year span!
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