Really?

As best I can recall, I share this story I once heard someone tell about his own family:

My younger sister never had trouble finding love. She seemed to find connection with ease.

But my older sister always had trouble dating. Relationships were infrequent and they just didn’t seem to last.

One day, my grandfather offered his opinion. Speaking to my older sister, he said, “You know what your problem is? It’s the way you say, ‘Really.’”

Stunned, my sister waited for an explanation.

“You see, when someone tells you something, you lean back in your seat, you cross your arms, and you say — with a tone of doubt — ‘Really?’

“Your younger sister, on the other hand, leans forward with curiosity — not naivete, but genuine interest — and with fascination, she says, ‘Really!’

“And that — that makes all the difference.”

* * *

How do we approach what’s new? How do we navigate surprise? And what do we communicate when we say, “Really?”