Magic.

Oh how I love this little boy's smile. 

I love taking my 17-month-old grandson to the grocery store. He’s a natural born people person and when he’s at the grocery he waves and says “Hey” to everyone he meets, often multiple times as we go down the aisles.

It slows us a down a bit, but he doesn’t care. And to be honest, I love it too.

The other morning, I noticed there were many older people shopping. There’s a retirement home down the street, and I imagine they rode in together that morning. His little wave and “Hey” to each person delighted everyone he greeted. He seemed to be wildly overjoyed with seeing each person. One lady was in a wheelchair, and he thought that was just wonderful -- pointing and smiling and trying to get out to ride with her. She beamed. He even gave her a “beep beep” and she gave it right back.

When he passed his favorite food, Annie’s cheese crackers, he got so excited that I opened them and gave him a few handfuls as we rolled along. He offered to share them with every passerby.

What if we all were that kind to each other?

The man I love and live with is a people person. He often stops to chat with strangers. It makes my heart swell every time. I can honestly say I’ve never heard him speak ill of another person. Ever. Like my grandson, he seems to know in his heart that a smile and kindness and assuming the very best about others is sometimes just what our crazy world needs.

Its 6am on a Saturday morning. I’ve been struggling lately with a bit of shoulder pain from a little bit of early arthritis in my spine.

Who knew arthritis could be so painful?

I’m lucky in life. I’ve never really known physical pain (except for childbirth and a couple of kidney stones) but both of those pains were short lived. This is an ongoing thing, and it keeps me up at night sometimes. My doctor and I are working on a solution and I’m grateful for that. But until then I am not 100 percent myself. Exercising and walking and working in the yard has been harder. Even enjoying dinner with friends sitting in a hard restaurant chair for too long has even been tough.

But this pain has taught me something beautiful. Something I thought I already knew.

You never know what someone is going through. We really don’t.

So. Be kind. Look people in the eyes when they talk to you. Put your phone down. Open a door for someone. Smile often (a smile doesn’t cost a dime). Look at everyone through the lens of LOVE and compassion.

My grandson knows how to give love so freely because that’s all he has ever known. Try not to let the pains of your past or even your present take that ability to look at others through the lens of LOVE away from you.  

I’m a “change the world” kind of person. And I like to think my work in the world has made a positive impact. But lately I’ve begun to realize that changing the world often starts very small. Just the simple act of being kind, sharing a smile, opening a door, checking in on someone to see how they are, seeing the best in everyone, or really listening when someone talks to you can have a tremendous impact. Those small little actions really do change our world in a magical sort of way.

Happy Saturday morning. Be like my grandson. And let’s make this ordinary day… magical.