What a smile can do - NSV

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2

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  • jlapey
    jlapey Posts: 1,850 Member
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    I make it a point to smile at everyone who makes eye-contact with me. Sometimes, I even make it point to make eye-contact. It really does make a difference. I think I get this behavior from my mother.

    I visit my mom at a nursing home every other day. (3-4 times a week) There are what look to be some really sad souls there. Smiling at them and saying hello definitely seems to help. My mother, in a wheel chair and barely able to speak, is VERY SMILEY. "Smiley" has become her nick-name. It always amazes me how someone who doesn't even speak can be so social and popular. She smiles and waves at everyone we pass and the staff is always hugging on her and joking with her.

    Smiling is good for the giver and the receiver.
  • Cori_Mac
    Cori_Mac Posts: 134 Member
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    Thank you for passing joy on to others. :)
  • UR2COOL
    UR2COOL Posts: 2 Member
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    What a blessing!
  • jlapey
    jlapey Posts: 1,850 Member
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    We greet people here in Texas regularly. At least that has been my experience. Walk past someone on the street and we usually say hello, good morning, good afternoon, and even howdy. OTOH, when I lived in New York greeting someone on the street was usually considered a prelude to a mugging.

    It's a southern thing. We do that here in Louisiana too. I walk my neighborhood a lot and everyone smiles and waves as we pass whether they too are walking/running, driving, or just sitting on the porch.
  • gcanter
    gcanter Posts: 194 Member
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    Smiles are contagious...pass them around!
  • mgmlap
    mgmlap Posts: 1,377 Member
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    we never know how our actions affect others..in your case....it was a wonderful reaction...so awesome!
  • angelicarubi
    angelicarubi Posts: 148 Member
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    A few years ago I went to an elderly home to drop off Christmas cards for all the elders that the kids at school had made. As I walked through the home and gave out the cards, with my family most people just took them and only smiled back, but this one old lady grabbed it then looked up at me with tears in her eyes and asked if she could give me and my family a hug, I said ofcourse and as we all hugged her she began to cry, she said she was so happy, nobody had brought her anything for Christmas since she had been there. I felt so bad for her:( So I went back and visited her for every occasion that year until I moved.
  • chocl8girl
    chocl8girl Posts: 1,968 Member
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    smile.jpg
  • Mylolamia
    Mylolamia Posts: 88 Member
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    That is so beautiful. A little gesture like this can make someone's day, make them feel so special. Good for you...you made someone really feel special today. We must not forget we are all here for only a little while so let's do the best we can to brighten another person's day. Little things really do mean a lot!
  • wbandel
    wbandel Posts: 530 Member
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    This is what I miss most about where I used to live. I now live in a small town about an hour away from Chicago and it seems like everyone is so busy doing their own thing no one even smiles at each other anymore. Back in Kansas it's pretty normal to smile at strangers walking by. *insert homesickness*

    And just as a comparison, even the morning joggers avoid eye contact. I've never met an unfriendly jogger/walker before moving.
  • Healthydiner65
    Healthydiner65 Posts: 1,579 Member
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    You are awesome! As we age we become more "invisible" to younger people. It gets frustrating. God Bless You!
  • boognish1972
    boognish1972 Posts: 83 Member
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    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RfwGkplB_sY
  • emcdonie
    emcdonie Posts: 190 Member
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    Thank you for the beautiful reminder and also for sharing something uplifting and kind on this forum!!!!!
  • Bronx_Montgomery
    Bronx_Montgomery Posts: 2,287 Member
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    Awww Thats a great story. I am always big on smiling to strangers. I am glad your good deed went unnoticed.
  • sgv0918
    sgv0918 Posts: 851 Member
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    How nice!
    A random act of kindness doesn't have to be anything big.

    Karma is only a ***** if you are!

    amen - and a beautiful story
  • laughingdani
    laughingdani Posts: 2,275 Member
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    So sweet. Thanks for sharing.
  • clover5
    clover5 Posts: 1,643 Member
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    I love your story.
  • xSakura
    xSakura Posts: 288 Member
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    Aww, such a lovely story! :smile:

    I must be in a bad area then, awhile back I smiled and held the door open for a middle aged lady, she told me to stop smiling and that she could get the door herself.. There's always one, I suppose :laugh:
  • PuggleLover
    PuggleLover Posts: 261 Member
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    Reading everyone else's stories has made me smile even more!
  • BobbieLee1959
    BobbieLee1959 Posts: 605 Member
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    Smiling now with tears in my eyes...you my dear, are a gem...a true diamond shining through the dust! :) So happy to know you! God bless!

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