Let’s Start An Epidemic

I read a poem this week that I’d like to share with you. 

First let me be honest: I don’t usually read a lot of poetry.  Nothing against those that love it, read it or write it, it’s just not something I seek out. If I come across one like this, I do appreciate it.

The poem is attributed to Spike Milligan though there is really no proof that he wrote it. He was a British writer, actor and comedian who died in 2002.

Smiling is infectious,

You catch it like the flu.

When someone smiled at me today,

I started smiling too.

I passed around the corner

and someone saw my grin.

When he smiled I realized

I’d passed it on to him.

I thought about that smile,

then I realized its worth.

A single smile, just like mine

could travel round the earth.

So, if you feel a smile begin,

don’t leave it undetected.

Let’s start an epidemic quick,

and get the world infected.

When I thought about that poem this week I remembered times when I have felt the same way. 

I’ve written before about that feeling you get when someone walks into the room, your world or your life that is just incredibly positive…it just elevates your whole being! Before you know it, you start to feel better about whatever was nagging at you. 

Can a smile do the same for us?

Now it doesn’t happen every time but when I’m out on a walk in the morning, I make it a point to try and be cheerful and say good morning to anyone I come in contact with. Over the years (yes my scientific study here), I’ve noticed that, sometimes, the person who had their head turned down with a serious look on their face suddenly pauses and puts a smile on too. It’s almost like someone opened the curtains to let the sun shine in. 

I’m not foolish enough to think I changed their life forever but for maybe that one moment I did.

It is so easy to fall into what I will call the sadness trap. What is it they say, “The only certainties in life are death and taxes?” To that I would add: Change.

As we get older, things change.  We start to lose friends or loved ones. The body starts to hurt. I can’t remember the last time I got out of bed in the morning without some kind of noise, either a grunt or your joints go “Snap, crackle, pop!” It was never my plan to sound like a Rice Krispies commercial.

(For my younger readers…look it up.)

There’s job stress, money stress, family stress, and health stress. Add to that the news we are bombarded with every day and social media and “STOP!” 

“Calgon, take me away!” (I’m just full of old people’s references this week.) You see there used to be this commercial where…oh look it up! 

I’m not naive enough to think that all we need to improve the world is to smile…but it probably wouldn’t hurt!

If you slow down and look around you will find plenty of things to smile about.

Here in southern New England we had some beautiful weather this past week. The temperatures got into the 70s and even near 80 away from the coast. And before you say, “Yeah but it’s going to be chilly this week,” I KNOW that! But I can still be happy with what we had.

That’s one of the sad things we do to each other. Someone tells you a story about something in their life like a joy or a celebration and your response is, “Yeah but….” Why do we do that? Why do some of us feel the need to throw in some negativity or rain on that person’s parade? Can’t we just be happy for them? Not jealous. Not sad because of something in our life that’s not right. For one moment, just celebrate with them.

I certainly know that little old me is not going to change the world. However, as I have said before, I can control my responses in my little corner of the world. I can smile and I can try to spread that smile to you. Then if you spread that smile, and the next person spreads that smile it just might start to make a small difference.

As the poem said:

So, if you feel a smile begin,

don’t leave it undetected.

Let’s start an epidemic quick,

and get the world infected.

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