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Sneezes. I really don’t like them. Not because they make snot fly at over 100 mph (which is pretty cool), or that you risk having snot all over the place if you don’t have a proper receptacle, but because I feel like I’m pressured to say, “God bless you,” or “Bless you.”
Wait, Deepu…you’re Catholic…don’t you love saying that kind of stuff?
Yes and no, Observant Reader.
I love saying it when it’s intentional, when it’s purposeful. But after someone sneezes? It’s an old tradition believed to be based on false beliefs. It basically originated by either trying to save your soul from Satan, or to help prevent the Bubonic Plague. Which, we now know that neither are true. The only reason we keep saying it is it’s somehow considered rude not to. Which, doesn’t necessarily make sense since nothing is said in response to other similar actions like a cough.
So I’ve been wanting to stop for quite awhile now. I don’t want to say it anymore. But I don’t want people to think that I’m just being rude. And it’s not like ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ are in a similar category, because do make sense (side note: people who ask for something and immediately say both of those without waiting for a response annoy the crap out of me – “Can you go drop this off for me? Please and thank you.” Ugh.).
It is, however an opportunity to ask God to bless a person out loud, whether they’re a believer or not, with usually little to no pushback. But, if I’m not actually asking God or even thinking about God when I say it, then I’m just saying it in vain, which, correct me if I’m wrong, is kind of against a commandment.
So either I need to stop saying it, or start praying it.
