The Lady Who Smiles

I don’t know her name, but if you were to describe her everyone would know her by this moniker. Seriously. She has rosy cheeks and a contagious smile. She works in the little import store in our neighborhood. I tried to converse with her more today, but that was disastrous. I say disastrous because once you start trying to use vocabulary, people then assume that you know what you are talking about. They then proceed to use vocabulary you’ve never heard. So, you are left to just smile, nod and say “wo ting bu dong” over and over again.

I ended up having to go back to the import store to buy another ingredient for my Christmas Eve dinner. She initiated the conversation this time, and I had a hard time following along until I recognized “nian” (year).

“Oh, she’s asking me when I moved here,” I think to myself.

We proceeded to have a piecemeal conversation about how long I’ve lived here, no I’m not going back to the states for Christmas, I’ll go back in the summer. Then she started on a new topic. I couldn’t grasp it at first, but then I heard the vocabulary word for “years”, as in age. She guesstimated my age to be 23, and I couldn’t have been happier. I told her my real age, and she kept saying in disbelief “23 or 24”. I think I might have been out smiling her at that point of the day.

I’m realizing more and more that in situations where my language inhibits me my body language, facial expressions and mannerisms really communicate my thoughts, feelings and emotions. When this lady smiles, it truly lights up this little store.

I hope that this Christmas you, too, have a smile as contagious as hers and a zest for all that matters this season. May the light that you carry be evident in your words, your actions, and your smile.