People are still friendly - if you give them a chance

I just can’t let Gilbert Bliss’s commentary, “We’ve become isolated in our in own communities” (March 28), go unanswered. I, too, walk at least a mile and a half every day in my Lutherville neighborhood. I, too, have lived in Maryland for over 50 years. I, too, qualify as old. I’m an old white woman, and I am delighted to wear that badge of identification.

But there our similarities end. I’m walking my dog and I wave at everyone as they drive by. I talk to everyone I meet. Now, I have tons of friends whether I know them by name or not. If it is raining and my hands are full with the dog and an umbrella, people in their cars still wave at me and smile. And if I miss a day or two because of being sick, I’m stopped and asked, “Where have you been?” And if the dog is at the groomers, it’s “Where is the dog?”

Children and adults all stop to chat and pet my Australian Shepherd named Merrie. They are delighted when I tell them that her full name when we adopted her was Merry Christmas. But we shortened it to Merrie. After all, she is Australian.

Yes, some people are on their cell phones, but a cheerful smile works wonders. And some people might not reply the first time, but don’t give up. Just keep trying. A pleasant “Hello” is hard to ignore.

So whether you walk in Towson or your own neighborhood, wave or say hello.

Ellen T. O’Brien, Lutherville