Smiling: Part I

Back in the 2004-2005 school year one of My Geniuses tacked a small note on the door jamb of my office. It said, “Smile Jim, everyone is watching.” She placed that note there after talking to me about wanting to see me smile more. I told her that I felt I smile a lot and that maybe I needed to scream more. (I don’t scream now and I didn’t then.) She told me that the class needed to see me smile right away when they came in the door. Again, I told her that I felt I did that. I reminded her that there was nowhere else on the campus where kids did the greeting (pounding on the tables and singing) and that counted as a huge smile.

I was going to take that note down after a few days and just drop it in the recycling. It was at eye level so every time I walked out of my office I saw it. I ended up reading it several times a day for years. I didn’t take it down until my last day at the high school. It was a good reminder for me that right or wrong other people’s perceptions aren’t always consistent with my perceptions. More importantly it served as a daily reminder that it is important to make the effort to smile because indeed everyone is watching. Thanks Sage Lynn; I'm still working on it.

It is the weekend. Please be good. Drive your cars carefully. Ride with people who drive carefully. Treat yourself with respect. Spend time with people who treat you with respect. Treat other people with respect. Talk nice to yourself; you deserve it. I look forward to hearing from you or seeing you. Keep yourself whole physically and emotionally. Enjoy your weekend.

P