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[hug_machine]

This may look like an ordinary tin of chocolates (not that any tin of chocolates is particularly ordinary!) but really? It's the ultimate mood-lifter, the ancient secret of cheer Nirvana, and a super clever idea of one Mrs. Mays (no relation to Billy, except mebbe by sheer awesomeness), sixth grade home room teacher extraordinaire. Yes, this is a SMILE PILE.

You can bet it made a heck of a lot of 12 year old kidlets grumble and roll their eyes as she handed out a little white box and a sheet of paper to each of us.

"I want each you to write one nice thing about everybody else in this class. At least one sentence. That's twenty-eight sentences. You can write more if you want, but at least one sentence with at least seven words for each person. "

"Like Valentine's Day in elementary school," a boy added with as much disdain as he could muster for somebody who'd just started junior high a few weeks ago.

She smiled. You know those people who can quiet a room down with a look? Mrs. Mays could do that with a smile -- the warmest, sincerest, hot chocolaty-est grin ever. "Yes, like Valentine's Day in elementary school. Write your name on the box and decorate it however you want. I'll be collecting the box and your papers on Friday."

She called the boxes our Smile Pile, taped them to our homeroom desks and told us to not open them or take them from the classroom. Throughout the school year, she'd add little things to our boxes --bits of wrapped candy, stickers and those cool fruit shaped erasers all teachers seem to have in their desks. Every now and then, she'd have us write something nice about a classmate, and other classmates would do the same. We'd fold them up and slip them into the boxes, unread by their recipients.

On the last school day of the year, Mrs. Mays sent the boxes with us after making us promise we wouldn't open them up until we were at home. Of course, practically nobody listened and the afternoon school bus ended up littered with holograph stickers, Jolly Rancher candy wrappers and by bits of paper scrawled with half-compliments by boys who didn't really want to say anything nice about a dumb girl ('Dear Cat, your feet smell like tomatoes').

'Course, I don't have my original Smile Pile anymore --this is a not-so-faithful replica of the original, started years after I'd nearly forgotten Mrs. Mays's homeroom project:



Really, this Smile Pile is more like a junk drawer of happy things. Nice things that have been said to me, things that make my heart glad, things that make me giggle and taste good, old photos and little trinkets I really don't a good place for, but don't want to toss out. I even have a few jelly beans floating around in there that are at least two Easters old! XD

Homeless little bits and oddments that have captured my heart.

Whenever I'm having a not so fantastic day --or even a drab and mediocre day? I open this little box up and gosh does it ever bring me right back to gleedom.

:3

Now. Here's the important bit. My Not Very Secret Mission is to make everybody who reads this entry to smile. I wanna reach out and connect all of you with a smile, if only for this single entry. A big ol' gleaming toothy show-off.

THEREFORE. I wanna help you start your own Smile Pile.

Everybody who comments to this entry will get a drive-by sprinkle of cheer. It might be an awesome fact, a cute picture or a compliment (if we're friends -- and if not, we should totally get on that, y/y!?). Just something to brighten up your day. ♥


PS: For you visually impaired peoples, did I do the visual description on the pictures right? I put it in the alt tag...I hope I did okay! If not, just lemme know and I'll fix it. :3

This post was brought to you by the awesome therealljidol!