I know Finnish people can be a bit reserved at times, but friendliness should be more than acceptable alternative to cold, polite(?) ignorance. I just came into my building after a walk with a friend, in a good mood after very nice conversations. Then a family, who I've bumped into a few times before, stepped in the elevator with me. They said vaguely hi, which I answered in a much nicer manner. Then their kid said something cute and I made a nice, friendly comment to them all. That comment of mine lead to a complete silence in the elevator, which made the rest of the journey very uncomfortable even for the very brief moment it lasted. Not a smile, not even a glance to my direction. Nothing.
I am kind of pissed at the moment, since I thought we were better than that. I get that I do not know them and maybe the kids were a little intimidated by a stranger saying something to them but come on, when did it become a social norm in our society that friendliness among neighbors is basically work of the devil? Did it occur to the kids' dad that by behaving like there's nobody else in the elevator since I am basically a stranger (and I am not even a total stranger, I've met them several times before) teaches his kids that it's better to ignore other human beings than to be friendly. No wonder why the issue of social exclusion is so common since these people live in a vicious circle of behavior that will make it inevitable.
A smile, a greeting, even bad Finnish small talk about the weather would be nice sometimes. I have had occasional bus stop conversations with very nice people, which has always made me feel a little better since communication with other human beings tends to do that and even though a chat with an old drunkie in Pasila is not what I am specifically referring to, at least they were very friendly. I even got a smile.
Damn it, people, get your shit together and be nice to one another. That's all I'm asking.
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