** sMiLe **

"If someone is too tired to give you a smile, leave one of your own, because no one needs a smile as much as those who have none to give."
--Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch

I was one of those people today... too tired to smile.

And it was as if this lady at the mall could sense it... when she nicely said "I love your hair"... I could have hugged her. I said "thank you"... and sampled the perfume she was selling. Maybe she offered me the compliment to get me to buy the perfume... or maybe she knew that if she smiled at me, that it would in turn make me smile. I walked away a little lighter... with a flip and toss of my hair and a smile upon my face. Thank you, Perfume Lady.

My day went much better after that quick walk through the Bon Ton.

Friday I had a scheduled showing for my house. The call came late in the day Thursday and I had a fun hair appt scheduled with friends Friday morning... So I knew I had to clean, etc late into the night Thursday so that I wouldn't have to worry about it. (I now will take a few minutes to offer a few hints... hide laundry in your washer and dryer. If you have laundry that you don't want to bother taking care of... put said laundry in baskets and keep them in your car! *not that I would know this*)

Then today I had an Open House from 1-3. I threatened the kids with banishment to their bedrooms if they made even the tiniest of messes from Friday until today. So as a reward we went to the "Red Crab" (aka Red Lobster) for lunch and then to the Tom Ridge Environmental Center... we checked on the progress of the new roller coaster at Waldameer Park... and came home... where I crashed on the couch with the Sunday paper scattered around me.

So to put it simply: I'm exhausted. A long weekend. Too tired to smile. But my hair looks great! *WINK*

Remember... that person who might look irritated or angry, upset or bored... might just be too tired to smile... offer a compliment. Offer a smile... my guess is that they will smile back. And if they don't... and if they say something mean or grimace more... just smile anyways. Know that you tried, and that's all that you could do.

Peace, Love, and Ralph Lauren Wild perfume.

"Today, give a stranger one of your smiles. It might be the only sunshine he sees all day."
~Quoted in P.S. I Love You, compiled by H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

"A warm smile is the universal language of kindness."
~William Arthur Ward.