The Thoughts of Mandy

We often wonder what could be behind a smile of person. If there is a story behind it, or if its just bliss & happiness. What made that person smile & why are smiles contagious.

The definition of a smile is form one’s features into a pleased, kind, or amused expression, typically with the corners of the mouth turned up and the front teeth exposed.

A smile can be seen in the eyes as well as the lips. You can see the happiness of a smile, in most cases, when people try to hide it.

Depending on our own mindset, we can overanalyze something as simple as a smile – we look at the eyes, the interaction, we read into it more than something as simple as a smile rather than allow it to become contagious and spread simple happiness and joy. We don’t always see that purely just the connection, the brain chemicals that can spike when friends meet up from different worlds.

In a negative mindset, we see these smiles, this joy, this happiness, as something must be going on, people don’t just smile, they are not just happy, they can’t be, there has to be a reason, there has to be more to it. We don’t see it for what it really is, just a connection. A connection that triggers the brain to smile, to be happy & temporarily remove the anxiety and stress of each day.

There can be differences in the times that each person met – there can be gaps in time before seeing one another again, but the chemicals that produce the smile, they never change, they are always there & an instant sense of happiness, joy & excitement can arise once this connection is made again.

The connection is never severed by time or distance. The chemical reaction is always there & creates a smile, happiness & joy. This connection is a human need, a need that has been there as long as time can tell. Our Tribe – will always be our tribe as long as we continue to love & support one another. As long as we care & as long as we choose to continue to make one another smile.

The time of each connection is not as important as the connection itself. Every Friend & person in your life fits in very differently and can bring about a different level of comfort, joy, excitement, etc. The Smile that each one brings has a different but same part of the brain it connects to, that it feeds with dopamine & oxytocin being produced.

During the pandemic, we lost so much of what made us our true individual selves, that made us happy, that made us connect to the world. Most of us are still trying to find this connection again, while others are trying to hide from it. Some of us sustained a new level of mental and emotional abuse during this time of separation that caused this abuse to increase in damage levels due to the lack of connections to these people who make us smile & give us hope to continue to move on each day. This abuse has made it hard sometimes to see who is truly there as a friend as a connection, or who is there to use you for their own needs & desires until you have nothing left to give.

Whether it’s a friend you see once or twice a year, once every couple months to once a week or so, that little bit of connection, that little bit of dopamine & oxytocin you get from these connections, can sometimes be the one little thing that keeps you afloat in a world of separation and disconnection. In a time where others have become so traped inside themselves that they take every opportunity to make others hurt as much as they do, remember, that one smile that you can help give someone, could be that one smile that helps them hold on one more day.

Don’t be the negative that destroys the happiness, the smile, and the joy in others – accept it and allow it to be contagious, and try to make your life a little happier too.

This writing includes pictures of the artist, magician, and coffee maker. 3 friends originated in different decades of my life, and each one always brings a smile to my life, no matter how often or little I see them, the smile will always be the same & my life will always be better for having known them in my life.