*Smile*

I picked up a new book the other day -- well, I probably shouldn't say "new" since it has been around for many decades -- and started to read Dale Carnegie's How to Win Friends and Influence People. I've found some great pieces of advice throughout the book and have already started using some of his tips around coworkers and friends.
I was feeling particularly tired this morning and to be honest, didn't really start the day with a skip in my step. And then I opened my book on the subway, began to read, and immediately felt better after reading a particular passage in the book. And on that note, I thought I would share the words with you:


It costs nothing, but creates much.
It enriches those who receive, without impoverishing those who give.
It happens in a flash and the memory of it sometimes lasts forever.
None are so rich they can get along without it, and none so poor but are richer for its benefits.
It creates happiness in the home, fosters good will in a business, and is the countersign of friends.
It is rest to the weary, daylight to the discouraged, sunshine to the sad, and Nature's best antidote for trouble.
Yet it cannot be bought, begged, borrowed, or stolen, for it is something that is no earthly good to anybody till it is given away!
And if in the last minute rush [of life] someone should be too tired to give you a smile, may we ask you to leave one of yours?
For nobody needs a smile so much as those who have none left to give.


For some reason these words helped me out of my morning funk and I found myself making the conscious effort to smile more and say good morning on the streets of NYC. And you know what? I felt much better.

*smile*