Smile Therapy

Life is stressful, whenever or wherever you go, you see everyone around you is rushing. Rush to work, rush to school, rush to train station or even rush to shopping. Take a close look, there are at least 100 people walk past you everyday, but how many of them would actually lift their head look at you and give you a heart-warming smile? It's definitely countable with your fingers. And now ask yourself, will you really smile to a stranger that you go into along the street?

"No way! people might think you're crazy or you are interested in them~" you'd say. That's why the society is so lacking of smiles.

i have had a busy week, the assignments test insomnias and bla bla have really stressed me out. As always, when i am pressurized, i'd tend to do something strange, something inconceivale that i myself will giggle at my act afterwards.

A friend of mine Josh told me on Monday "Shane, what's wrong with you? i like it when you smile! so smile for me!"

It's until then i realised i haven't been smiling for a week, i mean from the bottom of my heart in this case. So i decided to revert back to the old me (the dumb-looking-smiling-guy), and actually carried out an experiment that i think is quite funny yet meaningful.

On monday morning, i walked to the bus station to get a bus to uni. What's different today from the usual uni day was that i looked at people around me instead of my phone. i smiled to some of the people whom i thought were worth my smile. To my surprise, instead of the awkward smile i'd have expected from them and the monologue "what's wrong with this guy" they'd have in their mind, they actually gave me a light smile, "how're you doing?"was then ensued. Only one or two of them did so though, but that's definitely enough to actually cheer me up.

i kept up with the mission when i got out of the uni. In the bus, a senior Aussie citizen was sitting in front of me, staring at me when i settled down on my seat. i caught a glance at her, and met her eyes (from the experiences i have had all these years, people would just try to avert their eyes to somewhere else in this situation). So instead of averting my eyes, i met her eyes for another second, and gave her the simplest smile i could make at that moment. Immediately after that, she smiled, showing all her white teeth and i could tell she was really smiling from the bottom of her heart as her eyes were smiling as well at that moment. I didn't strike up a conversation with her, neither did she, but i could see that we both were delighted. The feeling is unbelievable, the feeling of getting a true smile from a stranger that you hardly know or she hardly knows you is just gratifying. Actually she very much reminded me of my grandma. my grandma has always greeted people, even strangers. with her smile. A smile can draw you closer to the people around you, and actually make you more friendly, more approchable.

The smile is kind of fake, but it's better than anything, and you could get more back that actually make you feel great with merely just a smile!

Getting off the bus, i could feel that my body and my soul were all relaxed, it's the brisk pace that led me to the way home. i went to QVB for a walk, and repeated the same things. i still got the same outcome as most of the people did bother to reply my smile.

not only humans need a smile, animal and some non-living organisms need a smile too. They might not have the sophisticated brain to think like a human, but they are capable of deciphering the simplest language in this world --smile~
that has actually given me some confidence about myself and some satisfaction to make up for the moody week i had had a few days ago. and frankly speaking, a smile is the simplest way to make you look good, look charming and most importantly attractive.