A New Resolution

Blog Post #96

Smile!

It’s a simple and surprisingly powerful way to improve your life.

Scientific research shows how healthy and therapeutic smiling is. Smiling reduces stress hormone levels and increases mood enhancing hormone levels including endorphins. Smiling can even lower blood pressure. Plus, a simile is contagious which means when you smile you make someone else smile.

2,000 Chocolate Bars

In a study conducted in the UK (using an electromagnetic brain scan machine and heart-rate monitor to create "mood-boosting values" for various stimuli), British researchers found that one smile can provide the same level of brain stimulation as up to 2,000 chocolate bars. They also found that one smile can provide the same level of brain stimulation as receiving a large amount of unexpected cash.

Facial Feedback Response

Charles Darwin developed the Facial Feedback Response Theory, which suggests that the act of smiling actually makes us feel better rather than smiling being merely a result of feeling good.

Find Out For Yourself

The only way to know is to experiment with smiling yourself. Intentionally resolve right now to make a genuine smile a part of your daily dress code, as important as brushing your teeth. It’s a feel-good-about-yourself tool that can set you up for success in achieving all your worthwhile resolutions.

Soul Connection

It’s certainly a mood changer. My own experience testing the power of a smile clearly indicated that. Grumpy? Have nothing to smile about? Smile anyway because you may discover like I did that a smile seems to contain the memory of all the smiles that you have ever smiled.

A smile seems like it’s inherently linked to the soul: the blissful image of God within. Smiling inspires hope and possibility. Prayer-writers will feel the divine presence of God when joy suddenly permeates their intentional smile.

Running errands the other day, I completely forgot about my intentional smiling resolution only to find myself being reminded of it by an array of random individuals beaming smiles directly at me.

"Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy."

— Thich Nhat Hanh

Smiling is a natural and universal way of communicating. A smile can positively impact almost any social situation. Our brain’s circuitry of emotion and happiness is activated when we smile.

Who among us smiles the most? Children — they smile as many as 400 times per day!

Smiling Can Help Us Live Longer

A 2010 Wayne State University research project examined the baseball cards photos of Major League players in 1952. The study found that the span of a player’s smile could actually predict the span of his life. Players who didn’t smile in their pictures lived an average of only 72.9 years, while players with beaming smiles lived an average of 79.9 years.

Success

A recent Penn State University study confirmed that when we smile, we not only appear more likeable and courteous, but we’re actually perceived to be more competent.

California's UC Berkeley conducted a 30-year study that examined the smiles of students in an old yearbook and measured their well-being and success throughout their lives. By measuring the smiles in the photographs, the researchers were able to predict how fulfilling and long lasting their marriages would be, how highly they would score on standardized tests of well-being and general happiness, and how inspiring they would be to others. The widest smilers consistently ranked highest in all of the above.

“Because of your smile, you make life more beautiful.”

— Thich Nhat Hanh

Peace Affirming Prayer

Peace fills my mind and flows through all my thoughts.

Peace fills my heart and flows through all my love.

Peace fills my soul and goodwill flows to all.

Peace fills my being and permeates all my activities.

Peace within. Peace without. Peace everywhere.

Peace in my mind. Peace in my heart. Peace in my soul.

Peace in me. Peace in my home. Peace in my country. Peace in my world.

Peace everywhere.

Amen.

Ukrainian folklore characterizes pysanky as a symbolic, talismanic writing that invokes a higher Universal Power for help, while believing with faithful certainty that It will. The contemporary version of this characterization is a paper-and-pen journaling practice called prayer writing that develops a personal relationship with God.