If you have been reading my blog, you know that I fell while walking my dog last spring and sustained a mouth injury. You can read what happened to me here.
Since then, I’ve gone through a year of dental reconstructive surgeries under the care of the remarkable Dr. Rhys Spoor and his kind and knowledgable staff. They are the best team ever!

I’m sure that people around me didn’t realize the extent of what I was going through during those months, as I managed to act fairly normal and tried hard to stay positive.

No one knew the constant pain in my mouth caused by internal injuries. The simple act of eating became too much work to fight the pain and swelling inside my mouth. I’d end up saying,  “Bag this eating, I’ll just sip on a smoothie and call it a meal.”

Food has to taste good to be enjoyable, right? Well, for about a year, it wasn’t for me.

Even with all the support I received from friends, family and my professional team, there were days when I didn’t think I would come out of this funk.

In addition to my discomfort, I felt unattractive. When I smiled, my mouth and teeth appeared crooked. For these reasons, I never smiled when I saw people. I felt self conscious and always tried to hide my mouth and teeth.

Last week, Dr. Spoor did the last touch up on my teeth. He said, “Well Kay, we got it done in one year, aren’t you happy? Now, you can smile!”

As I stepped out of his office, I felt so happy. I told myself, “You are like Humpty Dumpty who was put back together again!” I made up my mind to make up for the past year of not smiling.

I’m not ashamed to smile any more. I make it my daily goal to smile as much as I can. At the salon, everyone is telling me, “You look so refreshed, well-rested, and happy. You’re beaming smile is making me happy too!”

Bingo, that’s exactly what I needed to hear. I decided, smiling and sharing my love with everyone I meet is the secret to spreading happiness and good will in the world.

I urge you… try to find a way to build up your self-esteem. Your journey may not be like mine, but I am sure things have happened in your life and you learned valuable lessons from them. One thing I know for sure, when you feel good about yourself, your self confidence goes up. Then it becomes easy to smile and spread your love to others.

Here are my four top tips for creating a happier world:

1. Be the first to say hello to people, even to strangers.
2. Give a cheerful smile to everyone who cross your path.
3. Offer uplifting words to people who need encouragement.
4. Know that when you share your enthusiasm and positive energy with others, it energizes them and makes them happy too.

The most important lesson I learned after granting myself permission to smile is that I have the power to create a happy day for myself, then pass it on to others.

Now, go and spread your magic everywhere you go, and watch how others will pick up on your energy.

I’d love to hear your ideas so please share them here.