7 REASONS TO SMILE

We all know that a smile can do so much; it's often enough to cause a much-needed boost of positivity and smiling feels amazing, especially when a smile shared is returned. That said, random fact, I often try to not smile as I’ve never been a fan of my crooked teeth ☹ although the thought of this just made me laugh, LOL!!

Have you ever caught yourself mid smile and asked yourself, “what has me smiling?”. I do, every time…

1: Future possibilities – I sometimes get really excited about the potential of tomorrow. I try not to dwell because, as we all know, today is the only guarantee we have but, it makes me so happy to ponder over what my future might look like; what I may (eventually) achieve for myself.

2: The happiness of ‘my’ children – the young ones in my life mean such a great deal to me and then some! I love them equally and pray for them all the time. That they are safe, happy, developing well, flourishing, enjoying life, will have the brightest future, to be around long enough to see them living their futures, etc. Equally, knowing that all my loved ones are well, happy and enjoying life makes me smile.

Some of my faves

3: Writing – I mean, if you hadn’t noticed by now, I LOVE blogging! My interest in writing began when I was aged 8 and had to write a short story about an elephant as per the assignment from one of my teachers (at primary school) who was obsessed, to say the least, with elephants. I then went on to continue writing stories about animals and later progressed into poetry, some journalism and then blogging. I feel so calm and free as I'm writing, mostly when the words just flow. I only write if I'm inspired hence why there are times when I don’t publish anything. I cannot write on demand.

4: Taking pictures (of others and nature) – Similar to writing, I began taking photo’s when I was a child. Thanks to my lovely mother, my first camera was a Kodak Ektralite (do you remember those?) that you fed the film into and would later have developed at your local pharmacy. Many moons later, I have taken a course with Shaw Academy and have a considerably basic (cheap) DSLR which I mainly use to continue learning with. I LOVE it and, to date, folks seem to really like my work! For me, it's about creating longlasting memories and, again, it's something I find really calming.

5: Music – I imagine I have talked about this subject way too much across my blog but, it is what it is, I LOVE music and always feel grateful for it. At the time of writing this post, I’m listening to Tevin Campbell’s album titled I’m Ready on repeat! JOY!

6: Freshly painted nails! - I don’t like my hands much. The palms are always dry (they could likely grate cheese!) and they look quite old, to me. However, slap a bit of nail polish on them and they look alright, lol... I think neatly painted nails can make all the difference in how a person chooses to interact or behave in general. When my hands look (fairly) decent I'm less conscious about the 'state' of them and have no problem with them being seen. Yes, it's that deep! LOL!

7: Love – please tell me that you know you are loved and that you realise the wonderful impact your love has on others? Love is, in my opinion, the most powerful and moving emotion of all the feelings we are blessed to experience. My struggle with it can be super real at times, but, I believe in love and I allow myself to both receive and give love because I know without it this world would be filled with endless doom. It’s love that is ultimately the remedy for everything. Think on that for a moment…

Are you smiling right now? What makes you smile? 😊

Charley x