Well groomed

There is a separation between someone who is well groomed and someone who has manners.

Manners are a simple thing. It's about please and thank you. It's covering your mouth when you cough or sneeze. It's holding the door for others, respecting your elders and not using colorful language in public settings.

Most people have manners to one degree or another. Now how much manners they have can be up for debate. Very few people however are well groomed.

Grooming is something that has gone to the wayside in this world. Grooming shows in social situation. It's about being able to work a room. It's about having social grace. It's knowing place settings as if it were intuitive. It's knowing how to give a toast and what type is most appropriate. It is the ability to put others at ease, to be well liked. It is knowing a little about wine, enough to pass for choosing it. It's knowing how to address people and knowing who to introduce people to and who to wait for introductions with.

I'd like to believe I was well groomed growing up. I would like to believe that this shows in social situations. I can assuredly tell you people in my life I see as well groomed. I know that I would like to see more of this, to see the world become a more cordial place. I would love to see a return to social graces and etiquette. I'm not saying that we shouldn't tweak these things to make them a little bit more even keeled but I like the formality of it all.