Back when I used to teach first aid classes, one of my biggest pet peeves were cellphones. Generally, I got annoyed at anything that indicates the participant couldn't care less about learning the material. It's also a sign of disrespect for a person to think nothing of letting their phone call interrupt, not just me, but the entire group's concentration on learning how to save a life. However, most people aren't trying to be disrespectful. Most people just plain forget to turn it off or put it on vibrate. I, myself, am the forgetful type and appreciate reminders so that I can avoid being the a$$ in the group.
In class, I'll usually just ask people to turn it off or put it on vibrate during the introduction, and believe it or not, I also often find the need to tell grown-ups that they should take the phone call outside if they have to pick up. You'd think that mature adults that expect others to respect them would offer the same courtesy to others, but often, common sense isn't very common. Teaching adults is often like teaching a bunch of rowdy teenagers. Okay, enough ranting on my part!
What I really want to talk about is how to politely ask guests to be courteous during the wedding ceremony. It would be rather ruinous to have someone's phone ring loudly while you're sharing a teary "I do" with your honey. So we could ask the officiant to give a polite reminder before the ceremony starts, and/or we can put up nicely written signs at the entrance that asks guests to turn off or put their phones on vibrate. A nicely phrased wording is suggested here:
http://stylisheventsblog.com/2009/11/17/tip-of-the-day-turn-off-cell-phones/
No comments:
Post a Comment