Walking along the residential side streets of colonial Old Town Alexandria Virginia, feeling a bit sad, worried, and distracted by thoughts of all the chaos going on in our country and nation’s capital region where I live, a sudden simple unrelated act by one of the residents made me smile and brightened my whole day. An unexpected colorful yard decoration in the form of a cartoon duck outside a townhouse brought a smile to my face, heart, and spirit, giving me hope that beauty, fun, creativity, community, love, and happiness can and does still exist, even in the midst of the chaos storm in our country and world right now. My whole attitude changed in that moment. I doubt the residents thought about the impact their simple yard decoration may have on others, but I’m thankful that their actions made me smile that day. And it reminded me of the many people in my life, going back to childhood, who through simple acts made me and others smile.
As a young kid growing up in Georgia in the 1970’s I often spent time with my Granny Sis (Mama’s mother) and my Great Aunt Alma, whom I called Aunt Bobbie, who lived together. One of their next-door neighbors was a friendly woman named Mamie Massey. I can still remember her to this day. She was always coming over when she knew I was visiting and invited me to come by her house for an ice cream cone anytime. Now, all of my other relatives including my parents usually had ice cream of some sort in the house that they gave to us kids sometimes. But it was either store-bought ice cream bars, sandwiches, or a box/container of ice cream that we scooped out into bowls. Whatever the form, ice cream is still ice cream and a nice, tasty treat as a kid. But what Mamie Massey did for me each time was a simple yet very different approach that always brought a smile to my face. She scooped the ice cream for me into a cone (sometimes cake cones and sometimes sugar cones). To a little kid, that made it somehow extra special, and her simple action always brought a smile to my face. Now, 50 years later, I still think of Mamie Massey and smile whenever I go into an ice cream shop and order an ice cream cone. She was and is the reason I smile each time.
Other memories from childhood of simple moments or actions that made me smile include how I was treated with patience, kindness, and feeling welcome when I would go to the locally owned stores for my family. For example visiting Mr. Haynes Grocery for Granny and Aunt Bobbie, and taking careful consideration to pick out a little brown sack full of penny candy, or hauling my recyclable Coca-Cola bottles in my little red-flyer wagon to the local drugstore, Peachtree Pharmacy, near our house to get money to buy comic books and old-fashioned hard candy sticks, or when going to Mr. Meeks Grocery near our house to buy items for Mama and Daddy, including buying fishing bait for Daddy and me to go fishing on Lake Lanier or in the North Georgia Mountains. Those store owners and employees were patient with this little boy as I counted out coins, returned bottles, and carefully selected my items for purchase. Their small acts of kindness left me with a smile as I happily walked home with my treasured items. And as I think back on those memories from 50 years ago, they still make me smile.
There have been many times as an adult where I’ve experienced simple acts by others who made me smile, even in the most challenging of times. I’m sure each of you can reach back in your stories to quickly find examples where others have done simple things to be the reason you smile as well as remembering things you’ve done to make others smile. I put the title of this blog on a sticky note on top of my desk at home, and on my phone as a reminder for myself to “be the reason someone smiles today.”
As always, I encourage you to reflect on your stories for when others have been the reason you smiled or when you did something simple that was the reason others smiled. Our world and lives are challenging enough, and sometimes a simple act, like that colorful duck yard decoration by the resident in Old Town Alexandria, can be the reason someone smiles and completely change their perspective and outlook on the day and life in general. Let us all pay it forward. I encourage each of us to be the reason someone smiles today and every day. The rewards will also come back to you as well.
And I am always interested in hearing and learning from all of you and your related stories because, Your Story Matters. Let’s all be the reason someone smiles today.
