Something happened a few days ago that completely rocked my world and it all hinged on that one human act of Kindness we are all capable of—a Smile.
First, we are working with Crest and the movie Wonder to help celebrate World Kindness Day on November 13th and spread the message that smiles are powerful enough to change someone’s day, which is exactly what happened to me last Tuesday.
The Power of Smiles
I’ve been a mom for eight years now—a relative newbie to many of you, but seasoned enough to know there are good days and there are tough days. For me, Tuesdays are my tough days.
The kids’ library books are due on Tuesday; their spelling tests are on Tuesdays, and the garbage truck comes bright and early every single Tuesday. After school, we hustle to gymnastics on Tuesdays and after that, straight to basketball practice. Tuesdays are hectic! On this particular Tuesday, I missed getting the garbage cans to the curb on time, spaced the library books, and completely neglected to practice spelling with my older kids. By the time gymnastics rolled around, the day was already in a tailspin.
When we arrived {late}, my five-year-old daughter found out she had a new gymnastics coach and the tears started pouring. Not only was the coach new, but she was from Russia and had a heavy Russian accent with limited English proficiency. I already had to convince my shy girl to go to gymnastics every week and now with a new teacher—one she could barely understand—I wasn’t sure she could do it.
The coach saw Piper clinging to me crying and she did something I never expected. She came right over and knelt down next to my daughter. The coach smiled brightly and gave Piper a big hug. Her smile was beautiful, genuine, and shone through her eyes. I could feel her love and kindness radiating to my little girl.
“Come,” she said quietly and in a thick Russian accent.
“You are beautiful gymnast. You be star.”
She smiled again and that was all it took for Piper to place her little hand into her new coach’s hand and they walked out onto the floor.
#ChooseSmiles, #ChooseKind
Something touched me so deeply that day. That one small moment of human interaction, that one delicate wisp of kindness opened my eyes to the potential that we all have to create happiness.
Smiles really are the universal act of kindness. Mother Theresa said, “Peace begins with a smile.” By choosing to smile instead of frown, by choosing to be kind instead of critical, we can quite simply, yet profoundly change the course of the world.
In order to help create a kinder world, Crest invites us all to join their powerful new campaign to amplify the power of smiles. Let’s join forces to #ChooseSmiles and #ChooseKind every day!
The world has enough darkness and while we may not be able to control that, we can control how we treat each other. Whenever you can, wherever you’re at, choose to be kind, choose to smile. Not only are our smiles one of our most powerful human connectors, they are the most pure, universally understood exchanges between human beings. You can speak Russian, French, Spanish, or English and a smile translates them all.
The Movie Wonder
Crest is committed to healthy, beautiful smiles for life and wants to remind everyone to value and take care of their smiles so they can unleash them to the world. That’s why Crest is joining forces with the movie Wonder, in theaters November 17th, to promote kindness.
Based on the New York Times bestseller, WONDER, tells the incredibly inspiring and heartwarming story of August “Auggie” Pullman, a 10-year-old boy who was born with a facial difference. Now Auggie is heading to public school where he knows it will be impossible to blend in. How can you blend in when you were born to stand out?
Head to theaters November 17th and watch the movie with your family—it’s going to be incredible! Teaching our children to be kind in today’s world is going to alter history.
3 Easy Ways To Choose Kind Every Day
1.Choose smiles. Your mouth can perform a beautiful function and it’s really easy to do: smile! Smiles can brighten someone’s mood, defuse tension, and in my daughter’s case, dispel anxiety and help someone feel loved.
2. Be quick to forgive. It’s easy to harbor a grudge or dwell on the times you’ve been offended. One of the best lessons you can learn in life is being quick to forgive. If a stranger cuts you off in traffic, take a deep breath and let it go. Otherwise, things like that can ruin your day.
3. Practice empathy. Try to understand another person’s feelings.
Spread your light in a dim world. #ChooseKind, #ChooseSmiles
*A big thank-you to Crest for sponsoring this post!
Select photos by Cristi Dame
The post 3 Easy Ways To #ChooseKind Every Day appeared first on How Does She.
