Story of a Smiling Face on Social Media!

“It’s easy to look at people and make quick judgments about them, their present and their past, but you’d be amazed at the pain and tears a single smile hides. What a person shows to the world is only one tiny facet of the iceberg hidden from sight. And more often then not, it’s lined with cracks and scars that go all the way to the foundation of their soul.” ~ Sherrilyn Kenyon

Social media is full of pictures of beautiful, smiling faces!

What is your first thought when you see a smiling face on Facebook or Instagram?

Most often we infer that the smiling individual must be leading a very happy life!

He must be “having it all” as they say!

First of all the smile on social media does not necessarily reflect the true state of an individual.

Does that mean people post fake smiles?

Well! This totally depends on the individual whether he/she is sporting a genuine or a fake smile!

Let me tell you about my social media “Smile”

I must be the most “Smiley” face on Facebook!

Does my smile reflect the true state of my mind?

Most often it does!

Does that mean that I am always happy?

It does not!

Like most people, I usually get my pictures clicked only when I am happy!

But this does not mean that I lead a “perfect” life!

What is a perfect life?

I think most of us would agree that a “perfect” life is one in which everything happens the way we want it to happen.

But is this really possible that we lead a life that has everything going our way?

It is Not!

So, is it possible to smile and stay happy even if life is not going the way we want it to?

The good news is that it is!

Our smiles reflect our happiness. And, staying happy in the most adverse circumstances is definitely possible!

This I say with confidence because I am doing it myself!

I face very tough situations. There are times when I am completely broken! But I get over them and start afresh because I have chosen to remain happy despite my circumstances!

Let me tell you how I do it!

I get affected by a lot of things because I am a sensitive person. But over the years I have learnt to take several things in my stride, for instance, I do not let the opinions and judgements of others define Me!

I have come to terms with who I am, and I am comfortable being the person I am!

Despite this there are situations when I feel very low, sad, upset….!

I cry! But after staying depressed for sometime, I see my goal beckoning me!

And, I get up, gather myself and start over!

So, I wake up the next day all bright and happy, raring to take on the day!

I break, then I repair myself and go ahead, because that is the only way to be!

This is how it works for me-

I have recently started my journey as an author. When I look at the best women authors of my time, for instance, JK Rowling, I know what excruciating circumstances she has faced and emerged as an icon.

I believe that unless one suffers pain, he/she cannot grow!

“Pain only hurts when you are looking for a reason to quit. You don’t feel a thing when you know you can still win.” ~ Dane Cook

So, when I am in pain, I see the face of JK Rowling, and I know I am on the right track!😊

This is how it works-

We are a sum total of our experience in life. All our experiences, the good, bad and ugly shape our personality.

The truth is the tougher(uglier) our circumstances, the stronger we emerge if we know how to cope with them!

Any challenge in life has the potential to make us or break us! The onus of what we let it do to us is entirely on us!

Overcoming pain and suffering and going ahead is the best way to empower oneself. And, whenever you overcome any painful situation in life, you have grown, evolved, and become stronger.

If you look at the history of many greats such as JK Rowling, Oprah, Albert Einstein, etc. you will realize that they have all emerged winners after facing the most adverse situations in life!

There is a logic behind this. When a person faces tough situations, he/she develops his/her coping mechanism to overcome them. And, when he comes out successful, he feels empowered and knows he can overcome such trials again. This is how a strong personality is created.

“Bad things do happen; how I respond to them defines my character and the quality of my life. I can choose to sit in perpetual sadness, immobilized by the gravity of my loss, or I can choose to rise from the pain and treasure the most precious gift I have — life itself.” ~ Walter Anderson

So, I have now developed a coping mechanism that goes-”You have to get over this situation simply because you have no option! And, who knows, you might be en-route to something awesome!”

I may not reach the stature of JK Rowling as an author, but I have learnt to accept my pains, reduce my suffering, and use my pain to grow stronger. If not success, this approach has made my life happy and exciting!

Today I am happy that I know how to deal with my pains and evolve! I tend to agree with the following quote by Charlie Chaplin “To truly laugh, you must be able to take your pain, and play with it!”

Life throws different situations and relationships at us, they may be both positive and negative!

Whether our lives are happy or sad is all about how we cope with the people and circumstances in our lives!

Have you devised your strategy to remain happy?