germs - blog - Sister to Sister

Dec 27, 2019, Traditional Greeting spreads germs

Shaking hands is an ancient greeting created to keep strangers safe when they meet. When strangers met, they would clasp each others right hand, the one commonly used to hold a weapon. Women did not shake hands because they did not usually carry weapons.

When knights meet, they lifted their visor to show their face. This is how the warriors salute originated.

In this day of diseases racing around the world, shaking hands can be very dangerous. Maybe we should salute instead.

In Asian countries, two people meeting would put their palms together and bow. That, I think, is very elegant. I propose we replace hand shaking (and germ spreading) with palms together and bowing. Or, we could just touch elbows or nod our head.

If you shake hands, make sure you have hand sanitizer.