I don't have to actually say good morning- I'm not responsible for the way the world is now

[Ambonsai]

Old lady in the park this morning
She said good morning
I smiled at her, half got hello out, but got distracted because her dog was growling at my dog.
So she snapped at me "no response"
I said "oh sorry, hi"smiling
"No that's the way the world is now"
I said - sorry if I upset you by not saying good morning, I do try to smile at everyone in the park"

Turned away, Then I promptly burst into tears- emotional, hormonal right now.

I live in a very friendly area, most people say hello or smile especially if they have dogs. I chat most mornings to someone.
But cos I didn't actually say the words "good morning" I'm a symbol of what's wrong with the world.

[TheQueenOfWands]

Ignore her, she's a dick.

[Titsywoo]

Urgh. I get really fed up of the whole "this generation has gone to pot" crap. Like previous generations were all so perfect. She was just a miserable woman.

[streetlife70s]

The older generation have been moaning about ‘the way the world is gping’ since....well since forever. She was not being a dick. You did nothing wrong. She did. Ignore.

[PeiPeiPing]

YANBU. She had no right to demand you say hello back.

Yeah it's nice if someone says 'good morning' or 'hello' back, and it can feel like a snub if they don't. But no-one is entitled to a 'hello' back. There is often a reason someone doesn't respond, and it's not always because they are rude. (It sometimes is though.)

Don't let her make you feel bad. Hope you are OK now.

[Sandsunsea]

She vented her frustrations at you which was very unreasonable but she is probably feeling bad about it now. Don't take it personally, she shouldn't have done it but who knows what she's going through.

[CheshireChat]

I distinctly remember some philosophers from Ancient Greece! gripping about how it was very in their day .

I fully intend to do it when I'm older just for the hell of it.

Sorry she upset you, heck the old lady may have been having a bad day herself and is now kicking herself. Or she was just rude.

[Littlepleasures]

I was always taught good manners make the other person feel good. Moaning to someone about their lack of good manners does not make them feel good and is the height of bad manners. I used to work with someone who would pounce on people if they didn’t say please or thank you. She created a horrible atmosphere and couldn’t see she was the least well mannered of us all. Nastiness is always bad manners, no matter what causes it. YWDNBU

[SequinRash]

What a weirdo

[Sprinklestar]

You should have called her out on her rudeness.

[SequinRash]

Titsywoo how right you are
"They contradict their parents, chatter before company, gobble up dainties at the table, cross their legs, and tyrannize their teachers."
---Socrates

[MinervaSaidThar]

People are being unnecessarily harsh on the old woman.

Maybe the only time she gets to speak to anyone or have any human contact is out on a walk?

Some empathy is definitely needed here.

It takes literally one second to say good morning.

[ButchyRestingFace]

I said - sorry if I upset you by not saying good morning, I do try to smile at everyone in the park

Should have just said I was about to respond but got distracted by your dog barking at my dog.

[MaidenMotherCrone]

How hard is it to say 'morning' though?

[Ambonsai]

Minerva- if she'd have waited one more second we could have had a chat.
I was going to say something about her dog not dropping his ball and ask about his colouring

[MinervaSaidThar]

Hi OP, I'm not blaming at all, you're fine. Just thought some of the responses here were harsh.

[YouthsAStuffWillNotEndure]

Taking this off in a slightly different direction from the older/younger generation aspect -

Have you noticed it is only women from whom smiling or greeting is demanded? I'm thinking of the sort of people who like to say "hey smile, life's not that bad!" or the cliché "cheer up, it may never happen!" to total strangers. The speaker may be male or female but the remark is nearly always addressed to a woman, as if it is their job to be pleasing.

[drumsPlease]

"Turned away, Then I promptly burst into tears" - this seems like a better indicator of how the world is now!

[MinervaSaidThar]

Youth I do agree and I hate the 'cheer up, love' bullshit.

But I would still have some sympathy for an old person asking for a good morning.

[Eolian]

YANBU. I don't care what age she was or how long it was since she spoke to anyone. She negated the whole point of her attempt at a friendly interaction by the way she spoke to you. There's some quote that goes something like "Every person you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about". Who knows what personal tragedy someone might be thinking about when they dare fail to respond to someone else's cheery hello. She WBU.

[Hohomcfo]

I think smiling in response to a greeting can be a risk as the other person may have looked away, may not see that well anyway. I have realised this in my own interactions with colleagues - I make sure I say it out loud now!

[Findingdotty]

YW both BU. She was rude and unkind for no good reason. Very unreasonable.
But as a PP said, how hard is it to respond with a Hi or Morning when someone speaks to you first.
In my opinion it is important to actually speak not just smile. I think it's important to teach our children to say hi to people as well. Old age can be a lonely time and it means more than other's understand to have people greet them as they walk up the road for their one trip out the house that day.

[ludothedog]

This happens to me frequently. I think I've said something back to someone but the words just haven't reached my mouth yet.
Ignore her. She was rude.

[fartyghost]

The next time an older person moans about your generation just agree with them and follow it with 'the example that your generation set us is appalling, it's such a shame' and walk off.

[Hissy]

The next time an older person moans about your generation just agree with them and follow it with 'the example that your generation set us is appalling, it's such a shame' and walk off.

or say 'riiight... BREXIT anyone???'