Etiquette requires the presumption of good until the contrary is proved.
Emily PostRead
Manners are a sensitive awareness of the feelings of others. If you have that awareness, you have good manners, no matter what fork you use.
Interpretation
Good manners stem from being considerate and aware of others' feelings rather than merely following social rules.
Emily Post emphasizes that true good manners are rooted in empathy and the awareness of others' feelings. This suggests that etiquette is less about adhering to specific rules or using the right utensils and more about treating people with respect and kindness in interactions.
In practice
In a speech about the importance of empathy in communication.
Etiquette requires the presumption of good until the contrary is proved.
If you are hurt, whether in mind or body, don't nurse your bruises. Get up, and light-heartedly, courageously, good-temperedly, get ready for the next encounter.
To make a pleasant and friendly impression is not alone good manners, but equally good business.
An overdose of praise is like 10 lumps of sugar in coffee; only a very few people can swallow it.
Any child can be taught to be beautifully behaved with no effort greater than quiet patience and perseverance, whereas to break bad habits once they are acquired is a Herculean task.
Courtesy demands that you, when you are a guest, shall show neither annoyance nor disappointment--no matter what happens.
Let's not judge. Let's draw inspiration from each other's stories - successes and failures - and realize we're all connected.
Why do we feel jealousy? Therapists often regard the demon as a scar of childhood trauma or a symptom of a psychological problem. And it's true that people who feel inadequate, insecure, or overly dependent tend to be more jealous than others.
The worst thing to call somebody is crazy. It's dismissive.
In the ensuing silence, I have time to contemplate the word cuteβ how dismissive it is, how itβs the equivalent of calling someone little, how it makes a person into a baby, how the word is a neon sign burning through the dark reading, βFeel Bad About Yourself.
Dad could talk about peace and love out loud to the world, but he could never show it to the people who supposedly meant the most to him: his wife and son. How can you talk about peace and love and have a family in bits and pieces - no communication, adultery, divorce? You can't do it, not if you're being true and honest with yourself.
He was someone whom everyone admired and liked but whom nobody knew. He was like a book that you could feel good holding, that you could talk about without ever having read, that you could recommend.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.