To Smile

To smile is Sunnah that means The Prophet peace and blessing be on Him did it a lot and to copy His action is blessed.

But smiling is a weird thing. Have you noticed there are such a variety of smiles?  I don't mean within one person but from person to person a smile tells you so much about a person and I love to observe things about a person that they're unaware of. Not because I am sneaky or for bad intent but simply because I want to get to know the real person, not the one they want me to see. Everyone has that public face on, we all do and it's natural there's nothing wrong with that. Mine usually covers my embarrassment and social awkwardness. I come across really bubbly, confident and extrovert but if you observed my smile you would know that I am quite shy and awkward in public and with people in general.

Some people have a automatic smile. It's usually one where their teeth are showing and it usually comes from people who deal with public as their job, hospitality industry, sales or they might not be in this industry at all but they might be a people pleaser. They will often have a different smile when they are at home with their family or they might not smile at all, some people just don't.

Some people look like they are in pain when they smile. Some people have a weird kind of *feed me* scary smile where they just need so much from you. Others can look angry even when they smile and I particularly love, love, love the smile that that has a very preoccupied person behind it. It comes to their face like a flash and disappears as quick as it got there; too funny!

It's considered mentally healthy to smile, because a lot of people laugh but few smile. Laughing is not the sign of a happy person, it could come from a deeply unhappy person and sometimes can be manic and difficult to be around someone who laughs especially at things that are not particularly funny. I am a happy person and I love fun! But I have been out with work colleagues and because I wasn't continually laughing, shouting "woohoo!!!" and all the other dumb things the group were doing, they got quite aggressive with me saying I wasn't having fun. I pointed out that neither were they really. They were simply on a social treadmill of expected behaviour when girls are out and fearful of being accused of being dull so they made sure they were loud, laughing and being certain to appear as though they were the *life and soul of the party*. To me it wasn't fun, it was sad.

So look for someone who smiles as well as laughs. Even if they do have mental health issues it will show they are coping with them and dealing with their life well.

If a smile lingers and the face relaxes slowly then it was genuine. It means the person is still thinking of what it was that made them smile even after they smiled. If a smile disappears instantly it wasn't genuine but probably because of their job or some *please like me* thing they got going on.

Did you see that some people sparkle when they smile it's delicious and I find it hard not to stare. It's like their whole face lights up inside and out. It's part of what makes someone beautiful whether they are superficially ugly or not.