I am sick of this question. So many people, including family members, use it to keep relationships on the surface and not go any deeper. People that actually answer the question and start crying or start throwing things or whatever her quickly tuned out and turned off. People that answer the question all fine have learned to lie convincingly to themselves and to others.
I've gotten to where I tend not to even answer the question. I just roll right through it and start you know the conversation at a different entry point. It's a fascinating thing, and it throws some people off. In my own family I get the what your ignore my question and we go through the discussion of you don't really want to know how I am you're just asking that to get the conversation started and I am helping us into the conversation at a different point.
I've read that in other cultures the question is different. In China from what I understand have you eaten? Is the question that they ask each other. Because for so many they didn't have enough food or they were moving and didn't take the time to eat and it was a sign of caring to offer through that question which grew into a common greeting.
So I'm trying other ways to get conversations going. It seems to be working but I do you the odds odd look here and there.
