Smile

Smile. “When you smile the whole world smiles with you.” Ha! Sometimes. A smile is contagious. As is laughter. It’s how we’re wired. Try it.

The question is: What about faking it? Here is a favorite jingle of my father:

It is easy enough to be pleasant

When life rolls along like a song,

But the man worthwhile,

Is the one that can smile,

When everything goes dead wrong.

Left is in my father’s hand. A note he wrote to me. It’s origin was a sign hung upon a wall in the dining hall at his summer camp. Dad was twelve. His parents, immigrants from Lebanon, apparently despite poverty, could scrape together enough money to send Dad to a camp in upstate New York. During the Great Depression! I don’t know.

However, the jingle had a profound effect on my father. He was so optimistic. He was always singing. Here is a shot of Dad belting out a tune in an elevator. To the amusement of his grandson, Jake.

Another favorite expression of his was:

“Illegittimus Noncarburondum”. According to The Colonel it means, “Don’t let the bastards bring you down.”

 

Here’s a shot of a note he wrote to me:

My Mother’s Credo

was from Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady of the United States during the Depression, during/after the war. It was, “If it isn’t mentioned, it didn’t happen.” Mom wrote that to me in a letter. Additionally, she told it to me during a quiet talk we had. [Mom didn’t like her picture taken, so … no picture from me.]

What am I to make of my parents’ “words to live by.” Huh?

Smile

is also a song. Best remembered as sung by Nat King Cole in 1954. Here are the lyrics:

Smile though your heart is aching

Smile even though it’s breaking

When there are clouds in the sky, you’ll get by

If you smile through your fear and sorrow

smile and maybe tomorrow

You’ll see the sun come shining through for you

Light up your face with gladness

Hide every trace of sadness

Although a tear may be ever so near

that’s the time you must keep on trying

Smile, what’s the use of crying? You’ll find that life is still worthwhile

If you just smile.

Conclusion.

I don’t know. It worked for my father, his credo. He lived a great life right up until his death at age ninety-six (2016). Mom? Hard to say. She died twenty-one years before Dad. At just the time I was graduating from college with a degree in Psychology. In vogue then was “Inner Child Work” and mid-stream of a culture of narcissism.

The Irony is, the song Smile just might be one of the saddest songs I’ve ever heard. Give it a listen on your favorite streaming music platform and let me know what you think.