We all like to feel good; don’t we? Which would you prefer; a day where you feel like crap and look worse, or a day where you’re content and have a glow about you? Come on; tell the truth. This one is a no brainer.

When you boil life down to its lowest common denominator for any living thing on Earth, the bottom line is happiness. We all do what we can to get it. Some people take relaxing vacations. Some people drink, smoke or do drugs. Others eat. People find their happiness in a thousand different ways.

Me? I smile.

Okay, I know what you’re thinking - Poliana is at it again. But it’s true.

I wasn’t always a smiler. As a matter of fact, as a teenager, I was the queen of wearing my heart on my sleeve. Back then, if I was having a bad day, you’d know it just by looking at me. I could be very sullen - what a joy I must have been to be around.

It was because of my sullenness that I learned the power of wielding a smile. It happened on a warm afternoon when I was about 16. I was working at the counter at McDonald’s, and I didn’t want to be there. My head ached, I was cramping and my mood was just horrible. Being the responsible kid that I was, though, I went to work anyway and then let everyone around me pay for it.

After about an hour of this, my manager came up behind me and told me that if I didn’t get a smile on my face that I could go home for good. So, I swallowed my anger and pain and smiled. Every customer who came in over the next hour saw that smile. As time passed, more and more people came in until it was one of the most hectic days we’d had in a long time. Still, I smiled, and sometimes laughed. My customers smiled and laughed, too. Even the people who came back to complain smiled.

People were being nice to me! I remember trying to figure out why people were being so pleasant, and then it hit me, it was the smile! I figured out then and there that if I’d smile, even when I didn’t want to, people around me couldn’t help but smile back.
So, I started smiling all the time. Not only did it make me feel happier, but it caused the world around me to feel happier, too. And that made my life so much easier! No more did I get a frequent stream of angry customers, no longer did I face a sea of sullen faces.

And it’s been that way my entire life since then. My smile has opened doors for me. It’s kept me out of harm’s way. It’s just made life easier. Try it for yourself! The toothier the better! :D

Stumble It!