Smiling is good for you. It takes less muscles to smile than it does to frown. Smiling while talking on the phone makes you sound friendlier. A genuine smile is one of the nicest things you can encounter when you are feeling down. Here is a list of things which make me smile:
puppies I love their dopey little walk, their wagging tail, their soft puppy fur, their squeaky little barks. Especially when two of them are playing together. Too cute!
kittens (Before you assume this will be a list of baby animals, I promise it won’t be!! Just these) Regardless of breed, all kittens are little bundles of energy. Unlike their adult selves, they are bouncy and spring around chasing anything that moves! Their little mewls and bright wide eyes are adorable!
sunset A colorful subset never fails to illicit a smile from me. Typically seen on the train on the way home from work, I smile, zone off and enjoy art in progress by Mother Nature.
seeing someone do something silly Yes when they do it on purpose I am a good audience, but I also shamelessly love seeing someone spill something or slip while walking then check to see if anyone saw them do it! I will be the one with the knowing smile, often sympathetic, but a witness nonetheless.
music I haven’t heard for a while A song has the power to transform my mood and hearing a good song always gets a smile from me, followed by the exclamation ‘I love this song! I haven’t heard this in aaaages!’ Today this happened today with Missing You by John Waite & Alison Krauss.
compliments I am a sucker for a genuine compliment. They always make me smile!
a pretty tree lined street I love taking photos of nice streets. In my area there are beautiful tree lined streets and in autumn the bursts of colour is stunning!
looking at my man He always makes me smile. If I’m sad, moody, tired, or just flat, seeing him always makes me smile. He is like a child, bouncing off the walls, being cute and always wanting my attention. While this is sometimes annoying he will never fail to make me crack a smile.
accomplishing anything If I succeed in doing something whether it be writing my blog, doing an hour on my cross trainer, making a tasty dinner, finishing a task, I always smile when it’s done, as part of the ritual of completing it.
my nephews and nieces These guys and gals are so cute! Even though my nieces are in their 20s now (I became an aunt at 8) and my nephews are in double digits, they are such amazing little people. My nephews are energetic, intelligent, funny and active boys. The youngest literally climbs the walls! The other is super brainy & creative. My nieces are strong young women now, one finding herself through travelling and the other through partying (just like my big sisters were at similar ages really).
old couples who are clearly still in love Cliched I know but this is always a sign to me of hope and happiness.
a clean home I am quite house-proud, so a clean room or clean house always makes me smile. It brings a feeling of content, order out of chaos and all that.
a good outfit Typically this would be one I am wearing. I don’t always get my outfits right. I don’t always try to. But when an outfit just works that always makes me smile. Maybe it’s because it doesn’t always happen, maybe it’s validation in front of my eyes that I can style myself well, or maybe it’s just plain old narcissism!
We don’t always take time to notice the things that make us smile. There are heaps of other things I’ve smiled at lately; a possum running along a fence, flowers in the mid afternoon sun, the toddler of a friend blowing raspberries at me or a perfect crescent moon in the starry sky. Make sure you make time to see the beauty that is around us, all those potential smiles waiting to happen.
A x
82keystomymind 