to be honest

Tags

breakfast, food, honesty, poppy-seed honesty, smiles, stuck between my teeth, teaching

Breakfast is said to be the most important meal of the day, it gives you energy for the day and kick-starts your metabolism into gear, helping you break down those mean calories. Because of this I always make sure to start my day with a large cup of tea and a bite to eat. Normally it’s a slice of toast, a bowl of muesli or now, with the cold season knocking on the door I mostly opt for porridge.

But yesterday I had a poppy-seed bagel, lightly toasted and with some lovely chocolate spread to sweeten the deal. I thoroughly enjoy it and had a happy smile on my face as I left for work. I hurried to the bus, grinned at the bus-driver and flashed my teeth at the handsome chap on my right.

Then I stood in front of my students and tried to impart wisdom in a lively and interesting fashion, smiling, grinning and talking all the time. But when the students left and I went to wash my hands I caught a glimpse at myself in the mirror. I was horrified, right there for the whole world to see was a big, black poppy-seed stuck in between the gap right next to my two front teeth.

Suddenly my whole morning flashed before my eyes, the many smiles, grins and teeth-flashing making me cringe with embarrassment. But then I got angry with all those people I had met, strangers and students alike, after all WHY had no one told me? Where was the poppy-seed honesty that I thought was an unspoken rule of life?

I started thinking about how we always uphold honesty as a pillar of society and hate it when people lie to us. But funnily enough the only time I ever hear “to be honest” it is always followed with some sort of critic or negative statement. But simple honest interaction seems to be not the done thing, sadly and it leaves us all running around with seeds stuck in our teeth, our skirts tucked into our pants, tomato sauce stains on our shirts and toilet paper stuck to our shoes. Not a pretty sight!

So please the next time you see me with a bugger in my nose, something stuck in my hair or lipstick on my tooth please tell me and I promise I will practice poppy-seed honesty when ever I can too!

 

simple smiles

Tags

happiness, Phylis Diller, quote, smile, smiles, to-do list

A smile is a curve that sets everything straight.

Comedian Phylis Diller

When your day starts with a smile it is always a sign about things to come – so today promises to be a good one. And the thing that makes me smile even more is that I have myself to thank for my own happy mood.

As I sat down at my desk this morning I was rewarded with a clean tidy space and an already very ‘ticked-off’ to-do list already waiting for further treatment. There is something very satisfying about following up after a very busy day, I already feel a few steps ahead, very unlike my perpetual few steps behind.

With so much already done the rest seems more manageable, less daunting – and who knows maybe I will manage to finish my entire list this week, it would be the first time in ages and a goal to aspire to.

So, still smiling I am checking of my to-list and enjoying the sense of accomplishment it leaves me with – simple pleasures are often those we overlook but are also often those that give the most joy. And instead of waiting for those few momentous moments in life that make our hearts burst with happiness it seems to make sense to take the simple smiles as they come.  Small practice runs for those precious exhilarating experiences making every day happier and filled with smiles.