Smilefest!

I was lazy-lying in last night watching the usual cookery shows on Astro . Why, at 11:30 pm when I should have been getting some much- needed rest, was I even watching TV? Well, as has been true for most of my life, messages and people (sometimes people delivering messages) come my way for a reason. There was this chef who caught my attention, looking polished in his white suit, giving us viewers some cooking and life's advices. What new advice could I hear? We are inundated from every mode of media, with psychologists and talk show hosts telling us to lower our expectations, that depression is normal, and that overspending will create real stress post-splurging on those nice treats at the shopping malls. I reached for the remote control, but before I could hit the button, the chef, the least of whom you'd expect to be cheerie after toiling in front of a hot wok for hours, said the magical sentence – try smiling more when life seems tough and observe what happens.


Hmmmm…I smile a great deal and have a few fine lines to prove it. time for SKII How can I smile any more?

I've done this before, albeit goofily the previous time, but I decided that'll I would do it again and thus, decided to implement his suggestion. I put on my smiley-face experiment to the local this morning. Not everybody smiled back. Some were even pudgy-grouchy, but you can't really blame them, could you, afterall it's Monday. But I started feeling productive. I felt fuzzy-warm inside. Concentrating on making eye and facial contact with strangers takes energy. I started thinking about how busy I am, how rushed I feel, how preoccupied I get, how mechanized I can be.

Hey, I thought to myself, I could be on to something here, perhaps this little experiment would cheer me up as well.

I have to be honest with you: I haven't been smiling continuously for 5 days. There have been bouts; last Friday at teatime when Mom had her first experience of IKEA meatballs with lingonberry sauce and practically begged for more out of my plate (Empress Dowager's so gonna kill me if she ever reads this! lolz) and that Oompah experience with booze, Hungarian sausages and sauerkraut at Friday nite's Oktoberfest certainly had me in a zany mood. But I am appreciating this morning a bit more than usual. Sure there are life's irritations. Some of them are human, some are animal, some just are, but usually none are worth ruining one of the days of our lives.

How often do we smile at or with our loved-ones? Sure, the peak experiences of life like birthdays, special cultural celebrations, and religious holidays usually garner many smiles. How about the every day experience? How about when we come home after a day's toil at the office? Do we only relax a lil' more and manage more smiles on the weekends?

I know it's hard to accomplish, it's Monday after all, but please do join me by relaxing the facial muscles and make this day more joyous to people around us by putting on more smiles. Most of us have paid so much for orthodontics that we certainly ought to be enjoying the end result, right?

"You'll find that life is still worthwhile, if you just smile"
~ Charlie Chaplin


Have a great Monday and an even better rest of the week, my dear readers! ^_^




"Walk on a trail of loving kindness
Walk on a path of compassion
And all else around you will be beautiful."
                Every Blessing