A Smile A Day Keeps The Frowns Away

I am a definite people watcher. I love watching people and making up stories about what their lives could be like. A man dressed up in a corduroy suit with an uncoordinated red tie could be a retired rodeo clown now going for his Ph.D in Mechanical Engineering . The woman who buys a tray full of dollar menu frosties at Wendy's becomes a soccer Mom who forgot the treat for after the big game. The elderly couple holding hands as they walk down the street will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary and stuff cake in each other's mouths that night, renewing their love and keeping it strong.

As I was watching people today, I decided that there are 3 types of people when it comes to walking past strangers and saying "Hi." There are the ones who give a friendly nod and a quick smile with just their lips as they hurry off to class. There are the ones who I like to call "out-of-the-zone-in-between-classes" people. They are either too busy talking on their cell phones, looking at the ground while they walk, or look away as you pass by. And then there is my favorite type of people. The ones who catch your eye as you walk past, give you a full grin and give a resounding "Hello!" Today, I decided I wanted to be the latter. So I was. Every person I walked by today got a full out smile and a hello from Jamie. Guess what happened? I, of course, received a few blank stares and weird looks, but I also got a big toothy grin from a guy I'd never seen before in my life, high-pitched "Hello's" from a couple of freshman boys, some tentative "Hi's" from some girls, and a 5 minute conversation with an attractive man by the name of Sterling on his way to a Physical Science lab. The best part of it, everytime I said hello with a smile, there was always someone behind the stranger I had just said hello to, with a smile on THEIR face. You could tell on their faces that they expected their hello from me as well as I walked past them. I like to think it makes a difference in someones life. Who doesn't like to get a smile? So next time you're walking past someone, give away a smile. It doesn't cost much, doesn't take much effort, and is the first step to making a stranger into a friend. Happy Smiling!