BY: RACHEL WUMKES
You know those random blurbs that come up when you open a new tab on your internet browser? The ones with just enough information to make you go… hmmmm.
Yesterday, as I was perusing the vast land that is the inter-web for random information (READ: I got side-tracked and wanted to know if cows sleep standing up like horses) I came across this casual little blurb that sparked my interest.
It said: Researches found THIS makes you as happy as receiving up to $25,000 or eating 2000 chocolate bars.
I was curious. I mean, who wouldn’t be? The answer had to be some sort of incredible anomaly, right? To make a person THAT happy?
These past six months, my happiness has taken a severe nosedive. I try to keep my spirits up, I really do. Heck, I write a Feel Good Friday blog each week since this whole mess started in hopes to spread my positivity and joy to others.
Still, in my everyday life, it is hard not to get bogged down. The stresses of work and school and germs and illness and politicians and people who put their every thought onto Facebook and negativity strewn about can be a lot to handle.
Sometimes it’s just downright hard to look on the bright side.
So, I clicked on it, and I could not believe the answer. It wasn’t some crazy scheme to get me to buy something or sign up for yet another spammy email I’d get every day for the rest of my life.
The remedy?
A smile.
Smiling, as it turns out, has truly remarkable effects. First, doing it actually makes you feel good, even when you don’t feel that way. If you are down in the dumps, smiling will prompt your brain to produce feel-good hormones. You know that saying, “Fake it ‘til you make it?” It’s a real thing!
When we smile, we look better to others. Not only are we perceived as more likable, we are even seen as more competent.
The article went on to give a few statistics on smiling. For example, under 14% of us smile fewer than 5 times a day, while over 30% smile over 20 times a day. Then there is one group of people who really have this smiling thing down, clocking in as many as 400 smiles each day.
Children.
And here I thought their happiness was because they were oblivious to the stresses of real life as an adult! Nope. Turns out those little ankle-biters are happy because they’re smiling all the time!
These days, with mask coverings over our mouths a majority of the time, it may be hard to know if someone is smiling under there. Here’s a pro tip – look at their eyes. While the mouth is typically the organ used to smile, it’s the eyes that really say it all. People can smile with a weak, meager little tip of the lips, but when it reaches their eyes, you’ll know they’ve got the real deal under that mask.
And so, my friends, I challenge you to smile.
Charlie Chaplin wrote the words, but it was Nat King Cole who first sang them in the 1950s. It’s been covered hundreds of times over the years, which tells me maybe we should listen. Really listen and let it sink in.
Smile though your heart is aching
Smile even though it’s breaking
When there are clouds in the sky
You’ll get by
If you smile
Through your fear and sorrow
Smile and maybe tomorrow
You’ll see the sun come shining through for you
Light up your face with gladness
Hide every trace of sadness
Although a tear may be ever so near
That’s the time
You must keep on trying
Smile, what’s the use of crying
You’ll find that life is still worthwhile
If you just smile.