Okay

I ran into someone today at a toy store, a friend of a particular friend. He asked me how I was. The question was innocent enough. Casual greetings are tossed around by lots of people. “How are you doing?” hardly qualifies as earth shaking material. We chatted for a few seconds and he asked me again.

Everyone does this when distracted, they ask the same banal question to someone again. Even when there is genuine interest, it is common to repeat formalities.

We talked for a few more minutes and he repeated, “How are you doing?” Surrounded by plush animals, a wall of candy and novelty toys I realized that this wasn’t a mistake. “I’m okay,” was the real answer and that is what I said.