The Smile That Changed My Life

Sometimes we feel so powerless in this world, where mayhem seems to reign - where there are countless fires in need to be put out and where suffering and poverty on all levels is absolutely overwhelming. These circumstances can feel so daunting that any effort on one’s part appears useless.

The following is a true story that changed my perception and my life.

I was seventeen and severely depressed. I spent years bogged down by a heaviness that I couldn't shake. I desperately hoped for answers, but received only the constant echo my limited perception provided of a superficial, uncaring world.

 One dreary, rainy, cold day in the late fall I was walking in the streets of Cologne, lost in my thoughts, hunched over, eyes squinted. The streets were nearly empty. The people I did pass hurried by. I barely looked up until I felt somebody walking right towards me. I lifted my head, mainly to avoid collision, when the stranger made direct eye contact with me and smiled. This smile went straight through all my fences, inside and warmed my heart and soul in places that I hadn't been touched in a long time. It was as if the sun had come out.

 We passed and kept walking. I can't remember the person's face, but I can still feel the power of the smile.

I walked away from the encounter with feelings of happiness and hope.

For weeks afterwards I told everyone about my encounter. I came to the conclusion that the world would be a much better place, if only more people smiled (at me).

About three or four months later it dawned on me that I was part of the problem. I was one of those miserable people on the street that never smiled. And that was the moment I really changed.  I decided to become part of the solution. I have been smiling at random strangers ever since and I do my best to commit random acts of kindness. I do not turn around and look for results, but maybe just maybe one of my smiles landed in someone's heart and blossomed into hope in a moment when it was really needed.

God bless the stranger that changed my life. Thank you!