Smile

Smile, smile one more time . . .

When I was in college, there was this band called "Everything" that was hugely popular. They were a college band and they played funky tunes with lots of horns and psychedelic videos playing in the background at their shows. One of my favorite songs was "Smile".

The lyrics to this song ran through my head a lot today. I've been reading a lot about running lately and the running culture and a question keeps popping up on a Facebook page I've recently started following: How many people will actually wave and/or smile at you as you are running past each other? Are we all one big happy running family or are we like little islands unto ourselves, wrapped up in our own worlds and not caring about all those other souls out there putting one foot in front of the other and sweating it out?

I decided to find out. On a last minute whim I threw on my running clothes and drove out to a local park with a peaceful trail around an even more peaceful lake. If any setting could make someone smile, this was it.

Boy, was I wrong. My attempts at establishing camaraderie with my fellow runners were highly disappointing. Never mind a wave or a smile - it was all I could do to establish eye contact. Most of the people who ran past me were either staring straight ahead, staring down at their shoes or just plain staring. When I managed to catch someone's eye I'd give a little wave and a smile. Occasionally I got something, but mostly I was completely ignored.

Now I realize that running is hard. Sometimes you just want to get it over with, never mind wave and smile at some fool who is trying to make a connection. But I'm at a point in my running where I actually enjoy it. It gives me time to think and to appreciate the fact that my body is able to move forward continuously just by placing one foot in front of the other. I love the fresh air, the quiet of the trail, the hum of the cicadas in the background. All of these things make me want to smile.

Smile, smile one more time . . .

A smile can go a long way. I've found that smiling helps a lot in my job. Quite often the patients that I see are in no mood to smile. They're either in pain or they're weak or they're just plain tired. I've made a conscious effort to get smiles out of people, especially during our first visit. Most patients are nervous about physical therapy. They think I'm going to come in and make them do really hard things and that scares them. When they realize that I'm not there to torture them but to help them, I usually get a smile. It might take the entire visit to get one, but when I do it's a great feeling. It's a sign of trust and relief and a little bit of hope that things will get better.

Smile, smile one more time . . .

After my run I felt exhilarated despite all of my non-smiling encounters. I did have a nice conversation with an older man in the parking lot who had also just completed a run. We bantered back and forth about the cicadas and the hot weather and as I wished him a good day he replied "It's already a good day because I'm done!"

The rest of my day was not easy. I had to force myself to smile several times just to get through it. Nothing seemed to go right. My first patient was angry with me for some reason and I found myself doing one of those tight I-know-I-should-be-nice smiles but inside I was feeling myself getting more and more irritated with her. My second patient wasn't home. My third patient started crying every five minutes and my heart ached for her. I finally got a smile out of her but it wasn't easy. But she really has nowhere to go but up, so a smile is a start.

Sometimes it's hard to smile. Sometimes I don't want to smile. Sometimes I'd like to scream at the top of my lungs, like when I got home from my run and discovered that the dog had peed and pooped in the dining room. It wasn't his fault - everyone assumed that someone else had let him out when in fact no one had. Poor guy. I wish I could make him smile. I'll settle for a tail wag instead - that's a dog smile.

Next time you're frustrated, sad, angry, whatever - force yourself to smile. Think of something funny or pleasant or sweet and smile some more. It's pretty amazing how quickly it can change your mood, even when you're having a rough day.

Smile, smile one more time . . .