The Weight of a Smile
The weight was too much.
She’d been carrying it for a long time. The straps cut deep, the grooves permanent now. Her shoes were so worn she could feel every pebble.
She couldn’t remember a time when she wasn’t so overloaded.
It didn’t even hurt anymore.
She tidied up the last few things and sat down at her desk.
She wrote.
Investigators found the note the following day.
There was a brief story about her in the local papers that week. And a small, informal gathering.
Soon everything faded.
There was never a smile.
Image via Pixabay
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very nice story
Thank you kindly <3
Very good. Very very good.
I wish I could write something as stark and profound as that. But I can't, so I'll settle for having the fine experience of reading it.
The opening has some clear hints of where the story might go. Which is good, but which could have taken you down a tried and true path. The great thing is that you took the reader there down a different path – so quickly, so directly, yet so unexpectedly.
No trite nonsense, no melodrama. Just a brief but very realistic drama, which reflects a reality that is not often seen or mentioned.
And it all fits together so well. Even the little phrases. In particular, her words "that's fine, that's what I'm here for," say more than a full chapter by a lesser writer would say.
Kudos to you. And thank you.
Keep writing, keep improving. We'll keep reading.
Thank you. This means a lot.
That is so sad :(
As much as I feel I'm going to panci every time my eyes clock a stranger, I try to smile and be polite. As long as they don't talk to me lol or anything more than "bonjour" or something like that. Usually that's what it is, I get very uneasy when strangers try to chat me up. Maybe not the little old ladies or little old men, usually they'Re friendly and gabby and it's funny.
When I go somewhere like a store, I smile at the cashier. When I worked as one, I would smile even at the most "chap faced" customer. The "chap" face is a long story, but it's like a frown, a neutral, not impressed face, no emotions. Sometimes customers would smile in the end or thank me for smiling.
Once a lady was looking at me with those angry eyes and still smiled (of course, back then, I didn'T have anxiety like I do now) and I kept smiling at her as though her mood didn't affect me. The next day, she came back to the shop and apoligised to me for having been so cold and thanked me, because my smile had touched her and she wanted me to know that she appreciated it and it helped her feel better when she got home.
That's why, even if I'm scared now of everything and anything, I smile at people. You never know when it will save a life, or at least, helps omeone feel better.
You are so right.
I wrote this in memory of a story I read in the news years ago. It's true. And so sad.
Smiles are contagious. You are doing a wonderful thing in the world by just your simple smiles, hun <3
:)
Very nice and touching post, thanks for sharing
Thank you. And thank you for reading.
Very good post.
Thank you <3
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Thank you for your sharing and nice post sir.
Thank you kindly
This post has received a 0.52 % upvote from @drotto thanks to: @banjo.
wow @arbitrarykitten ... very stark and profound.
Thank you hun