Today, give a stranger one of your smiles. It might be the only sunshine he sees all day.
~Quoted in P.S. I Love You, compiled by H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
You have no idea what a smile can do. A colleague of mine came up to me today and said quite simply 'Thank you'. I didnt recall doing anything to warrant a 'thanks' so smiling I asked her 'why'. She said 'Your smile..thank you for smiling' and continued 'the other day I woke up with a headache and a heavy heart thanks to the fight I had with someone dear, I felt as though I were the biggest loser in this world. Suddenly life looked meaningless. I dragged myself to work and there you were at the pantry sipping tea. You looked up and gave me the kindest smile ever and enquired if I had breakfast. That was it. I just wanted a smile and u smiled, it made all the difference. You saved my day. So...thank you!'
To say I was overwhelmed would be an understatement...No one had said that to me. My mom in fact finds it weird I smile a lot, she thinks Im a loony bin :) so do many of em pals out there. 'What is so funny?' 'What are you smiling for?' 'Something wrong with me..why are u smiling?' are some of the comments I get and I think to myself 'If u dont understand my smile, u probably will never understand me, the words I say, the things I do'
I smile because I love smiling and the credit for this goes to my late pal Beena who told me 'Smile even when your heart is breaking, your strength might help another who may not be as strong as you.'
On my part, I've seen people smile in the worst of situations. There was this person, a family acquaintance who had five kids, he wasnt 'well-off' ... he could hardly afford to feed his family, a meal a day for the entire lot spelt 'luxury' ...I hear the kids used to sip on black tea every day to quell hunger pangs. Through all this, the guy never forgot to smile. He had a smile for everyone, his kids followed suit, they were the most pleasantest bunch ever ... Their smiles came from within, genuine and kind. Most of us around them had a relatively better life but we seldom smiled. Oh how poor we were!
Their smiles made us feel good, that was their wealth they were sharing with us...us miserable twits who ate to our belly's content 4 times a day, who argued and bickered over trivial stuff, who threw tantrums 'Christina's parents got her a cycle. I want one too.. Now!!' Oh how poor we all were!!
While we went to sleep plotting and planning how to get our way with family and friends, there was this family who slept on 'near empty' stomachs, with a prayer in their heart and a smile on their lips. Oh how poor we were!! I remember how nice I used to feel when someone smiled at me, genuine smiles that spoke of no malice, envy or hatred. I realised that if I did the same, someone else would feel the way I did and that is the reason I smile ..a lot these days..for no apparent reason. They may call me weird, but that is fine by me...The ratio of 'weird' to 'thank you for smiling' may be 1000:1, but for me its that 1 that matters. Its that 1 that makes me feel I am of some use to people around.
A friendly look, a kindly smile, one good act, and life's worthwhile. (quote)
So ..Smile!! You never know, your smile may make the difference in someone's life today...
A smile costs nothing but gives much. It enriches those who receive without making poorer those who give. It takes but a moment, but the memory of it sometimes lasts forever. None is so rich or mighty that he cannot get along without it and none is so poor that he cannot be made rich by it. Yet a smile cannot be bought, begged, borrowed, or stolen, for it is something that is of no value to anyone until it is given away. Some people are too tired to give you a smile. Give them one of yours, as none needs a smile so much as he who has no more to give.
~Author Unknown
