Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.
Thich Nhat Hanh
Many years ago, I got a bee in my bonnet to do a three month meditation retreat on Holy Island in Scotland. At the time I was living about two hours drive from Johannesburg and one day while in Joburg, I popped in at a travel agent to price air tickets to start saving for the trip. Some sort of instant karma kicked in, and two days later, I arrived, or should I say staggered, on to Holy Island, wondering 'what the bleep' just happened. That first week was one of the toughest of my life. I arrived the day the group of retreatants decided to spend a week in silence. I was exhausted, shell-shocked, completely disorientated and way, way out of my depth. Being silent adds to the intensity of …well, everything and one day it all got on top of me. I fled my room hoping to out run my mind (which by the way, doesn’t seem possible), or the very least, escape myself for a bit. I'm digressing but please bear with me, there is a point to this little tale and it is coming soon!
Holy Island is a tiny, very beautiful island, natural, untouched and dedicated to World Peace. Simply being there restores and rejuvenates body and mind. Unfortunately, at the time I was too distraught to appreciate any of those qualities. I will never forget what happened next. There I was, standing in this magnificent place, feeling trapped and frantic when a monk walked past. We never spoke a word, but as he passed by, he smiled a warm and genuine smile right at me and it changed everything.
There are times when a smile can save your life, it brings light and warmth to dark places and reminds you of good things you may have forgotten. It is easy to underestimate the power of an open- hearted smile when words fail us.
Your homework for this week, and you can ask my clients, I am very strict about homework so you have to do it because I said so! Everyday this week make an effort to smile at someone who needs it. It doesn't matter if it is a stranger or a friend, open your heart and beam your best smile at them. The thing about smiling is that it's infectious and utterly irresistible. So off you go, get on out there and start smiling.
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