Smiling becoming a vanishing act
‘Peace begins with a smile,’ had been the mantra of life for Mother Teresa. When I read this simple quote in the diary of my little one the other day, I wondered whether these days, we see smiling faces often around us or this act of smiling is diminishing with time. As we are moving about in life, we find the count of smiling faces around us reducing. Be it our work place, public places or the people around us elsewhere. Poignant expressions seem to rule majority of the faces, surprisingly though! Smiling seems to be becoming a vanishing act.
Ever pondered why has this become a common phenomenon over time? One reason everyone would state is that life has turned so stressful and fast-paced that we are always trying to catch up with time or someone or with our own busy selves. In this momentum and rush, we bury an essential expression like smile under dust or we forget to carry it along. Sometimes it gets overpowered by other strong emotions such as disgust, anger, or irritation. In the process, we leave behind the image of our smiling faces only in the mirror or sealed in picture frames. That image seems so perfect, but turns far from reality.
Also, the moment we would start sporting a happy look, all the negative neds and nellies would surround us, at the blink of an eye! They would then make sure that our smile disappears as the clouds of doubts or unhappiness are made to hover over it.
As we grow older, we build bridges around us. We enclose our space, base our decisions on egos and create wars. But, a smile is all it takes to burn those bridges, and to open up. But we seldom choose the latter route. We prefer to go via the first option to prove our mettle.
As per the World Happiness Index report, 2018, released by the United Nations, India has been placed at 133rd position, down from 122nd position last year. Other nations such as Finland, Norway, Denmark and Iceland etc have risen up the ladder of being the happiest countries. This figure reflects in a way that we are not happy with what we have and what we are doing in our lives. But are we making efforts to contribute to our own happiness and that of the surroundings? What do other nations do differently to make their denizens happy? This is something to be taken seriously and worked upon.
Although scientifically it has been stated that smiling comes easy, as it involves lesser number of muscles and helps us relax. But then why do we find it so difficult to smile, if it’s such an easy task? Alas! The answer lies within us.
We have to find happiness within and no one else can bring it to us. If we express our gratitude for all we have, we will certainly feel happier and peaceful within. Then, we would easily flaunt our smiles and walk up in the sun cheerfully!
AS WE GROW OLDER, WE BUILD BRIDGES AROUND US. WE ENCLOSE OUR SPACE, BASE OUR DECISIONS ON EGOS AND CREATE WARS