- The smile I flash a stranger when they look familiar to me, but my brain has not processed from where I know them. Most of the time, it is a wrong guess and, I smile at a stranger. I make them feel uncomfortable in the 30 seconds that it takes to walk past me. I think I had imagined the stranger smile at me for a millisecond before realizing they didn’t know me as well. I’ve done my job of confusing a stranger unnecessarily, right?
- The thankful grin that takes shape on my face when I’m filled with gratitude. This grin comes and goes many times a day either with the helping aunties after they clean the room, at the juice shop bhaiyya who handed me my favourite banana milkshake or at the cab driver after being dropped safely. I hope it makes a difference to them when they get appreciated with a simple ‘thank you’ along with a kind smile for all their hard work.
- I can’t help but smile when I’m reminiscing about all the lame games we made up during the summer vacations when we were kids to not die of boredom. At the end of my flashback, I can only hope to create more such memories to think about it in the future. Ah, the nostalgia!
- Then comes the fake smile I give when I don’t like where the conversation is headed. I crack a smile that isn’t very convincing, but it helps me kill the topic. This smile has helped me end many conversations pointed at me and, I give this smile because any reply I give would end up with a fight. I’m going to rename it as ‘being civil’ instead of ‘fake’. Makes more sense now!
- The sideward creepy smile I give my friends when I tease my friends with someone. I’m sure if someone looks at me at that moment, they will think I’m having a face spasm. I can’t help that I tease them with everyone possible and also have the ability to find a reason why ‘they are meant for each other’. I can’t wait to do this when I meet my friends next time and embarrass them!
- This last one is my favourite. It’s more of a laugh, but at the end of the laughter, there is a huge smile plastered on my face. My friends and I laugh to nothing in particular but we just can’t stop laughing while holding our stomachs in pain. If we were standing, we move to a seated position and, if we were on our beds, then we are on the floor to laugh harder. Be it in real or through video calls, we’ve managed to make each other smile and get through the tough times together!
My kind of smile
Published
World of Jeana 