“I’ve got nothing to do today but smile.”- Simon and Garfunkel
In honor of World Smile Day® (which was yesterday), I wanted to reflect on some of the little things that made me smile throughout the day. I knew nothing about World Smile Day®, until I was on Facebook yesterday morning and it was the first notification to come up on my Newsfeed. It seems that nowadays there is a Day to recognize just about everything. However, I didn’t realize there was an entire history behind World Smile Day® until I did a little investigating. It also has its own Facebook page. Harvey Ball, the designer of the iconic smiley face, declared World Smile Day® as the first Friday in October each year. The first official World Smile Day® took place in 1999. Its motto is “Do an act of kindness. Help one person smile!”
Although I didn’t plan anything specific at school to recognize this day, I held in my mind and made a point to exude a positive energy throughout the day. Perhaps that served as my act of kindness. It’s amazing that such a simple concept can potentially brighten someone else’s day and/or reinforce a positive mindset in others. Can’t everyday be World Smile Day®?? I guess it is easier to be energetic, happy, and excited on Fridays… but maybe all it takes is choosing to channel this same energy into each and every day.
Here are some of the simple ‘smiling moments’ from yesterday:
There is a group of seven deer that I see on my way to work, grazing in the same spot each morning. They have only been around recently, but they have become something I look forward to!
I have a morning duty to greet students by a side entrance to our school building. Each morning, I see three sisters walking in (two of whom are twins), always holding hands. The twins are in 3rd grade, and their sister is in 2nd grade. They walk in a row, with the younger sister in center. It’s really cute.
As a behavior incentive for students, I’ve created awards for classes to earn. One of the awards is called the Golden Palette: a trophy that has a space for a classroom teacher’s name. If the class earns all six colors on their color wheel, they win the Golden Palette for their classroom for the week. Sure enough, one of the classes had earned their 6th color yesterday. As if that wasn’t enough to smile about, I mentioned to the students that it was Smile Day, and that made them smile even more!
In the evening, Andy and I had some a couple friends over. We spent our time listening to music and telling stories. It was a fun, relaxing time. One of our friends had brought ice-cream over, and he noticed that I had broken into my Halloween candy stash. He suggested that I crush up some of the candy to put in the ice-cream. It was ah-mazing!
All it takes is recognizing some of the simple pleasures in life to see how much we have to smile for!
What are some things that make you smile?