Now that we are all wearing face masks, can I just tell you how much I miss seeing people smile? I think that’s been the biggest adjustment for me during this new norm. No matter where I go, and no matter how many people I’m around every day—with six feet of separation, of course—you can’t see what’s going on under the mask! I close my eyes and imagine lots of smiles, but it doesn’t beat the real thing.

They say the simple act of smiling or seeing someone else smile reduces stress and generates positive emotions. I guess I didn’t realize how much I was missing out or how much all those “missing smiles” affected me until I went to the grocery store on July 4th. It was very crowded, and everyone had masks on and were keeping their distance from one another. I was glad everyone was trying to stay safe, but as I shopped, I realized I kept getting grumpier. Granted, I was frustrated that I had to stand back longer than I wanted just to get produce, but it wasn’t that. You simply couldn’t see if anyone was smiling and politely waiting with you, or if we were all feeling grumpy.

I wonder if clear masks would help? I bet wearing them would make us all feel better. At least then, we could see each other smiling and being friendly.

Until then let’s all presume everyone is smiling!

With all that said, I also miss seeing people at our live seminars. However, one bright side is that I have been enjoying all the smiles during our webinars. Thank you for smiling on those! I will be glad when we can get together in person.

Thanks for reading! And keep smiling!