The internet is out in our house. Fun times. My dear son said, “Oh, Mom so this is what it was like when you were a kid.” “Yes, son, I had to entertain myself, that’s how I read so many books from the library in the summer. You should try it sometime.”
Anyway, we dusted off the DVD player this afternoon and pulled a bin of movies out of the garage. As I write this, he is watching Elf. I love it when Buddy “the elf” is working and the department store manager asks, “Why are you smiling like that?” Buddy replies, “I just like to smile. Smiling’s my favorite!” Buddy walks down the streets of New York City greeting people and asking them their names. He shouts out a congratulations to a diner for having “the world’s best coffee” according to the sign in the window.
Wouldn’t it be great if we could all be just a smidge more like Buddy all year long? If we wore a smile because smiling is our favorite? If we complimented people for any achievement, large or small? If you’ve seen the movie, you know how excited Buddy gets over it being announced that Santa is coming to the department store. What if we got as excited over Jesus as Buddy does over Santa? What if our joy and thankfulness just bubbled over onto everyone we met?
I know we cannot be cheerful all the time. I know there are days where we won’t wear a smile. But even on those difficult days, we can still be polite, compassionate, and kind. We don’t have to make other people around us miserable just because we are struggling. Not to mention, if we can pay our joy forward on our best days, perhaps it will be returned to us when things are tough.
In Matthew 7:12 Jesus said, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Hardly complicated. We call it the golden rule, for a reason. I’m going to try to remember this next time I’m stuck in traffic. And when someone needs to have a longer conversation than I’ve planned for. And when the register is down at the grocery store. And when my son wants me to play Basketball with him, which is laughable, really. And when the school bus driver is too late or too early. Or when my phone screen is broken, or the internet is down. Because, what a gift to slow down and see each other, ya know?