Finding My Superpower

Someone smiled at me today and it felt good. Not just good, but really great.

Like everything else these days, it was different. I couldn’t see his mouth, but I could tell he was smiling by his eyes. They crinkled at the edges and looked a little lighter. It was only a brief moment, but it made me remember how much kindness matters. It’s a feeling that in my isolation I’d forgotten, and I want to be sure I don’t lose it.

Kindness feels so good and costs so little. You don’t have to get yourself all worked up or argue or complain, you can just relax and smile. Concentrate on doing it and you’ll be surprised how good it feels. I once read about a study that found that if you make yourself smile for ten seconds, you’ll feel just a little bit happier, even if you’re all alone. Try it. Right now. I dare you. I’m doing it too. No one’s looking, except maybe the cat, and he thinks I’m weird anyway. So here goes…

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Guess what? It does work. Not in the same way as exchanging smiles with a real person, but along with the lift in the sides of my mouth, there’s a little bit of a lift in my spirit. It feels good, doesn’t it? Now it’s time to take it to a more advanced level. Try it on a real person. You can try with your family or friends or whoever you happen to be living with, or take it to the virtual world on a Zoom call. If you really want to add to the effect, say something nice when you are smiling. It’s not hard, but we’ve gotten out of practice so it takes intentional effort.

Now for the most important test. Try to smile while wearing your mask. It might feel strange at first, but you have to get past the feeling that because you can’t see it, it doesn’t matter. Because it does. Concentrate on your eyes. See if you can get the smile to feel like it’s lifting your face upwards, and you can feel that that little bit of warmth radiating out through your eyes. Warmth and light through your eyes? Sounds like a superpower, doesn’t it? It kind of is one, actually. Think about it. You have the power to influence people around you and make them feel a little better about the world. That’s no small feat these days.

There’s a lot to worry about, and it can feel heavy and overwhelming, but with so much sadness and stress, we need each other more than ever. Trying to keep a distance from each other doesn’t mean we can’t be kind. We might just need to focus on it a bit more.

So smile like you mean it. Concentrate on your eyes, as well as the person you’re smiling at. Practice in the mirror if you need to, and tell yourself it matters. Because it does. Take your newfound superpower out into the world and use it. We can’t stop being kind to one another now.