Anatomy of a Smile

1, 2, 3... SMILE. silence. Click. Laughter. Loads of it.

Photographs have a way of making humans show off their best smile -- smile that can launch a thousand toothpaste commercials. Gone are the days when either life-size portraits or family photos reveal human subjects being caught in immovably stiff pose and inconsolably depressed mood.

Old photographs -- the ones called sepia --remind me of the Great Depression where existence became so pricey that people could hardly afford to smile. With their intense eye and tight-lipped expressions, photo shoots at that time appeared more like a burden than a delight.

Of course, situations have shifted these days. Some cameras now even have smile shutters: they click only when the subject smiles!

Though nothing much has changed in life -- and living, still: A smile is a smile.

The Anatomy of Smile

Smile bond. Age alienates kin and hair types deny relations. But smiles reveal blood connection.

Smile effect. Tongue out or full teeth? The kind of smile we give away is the kind that comes back to us. We may never be certain of the effect of our smile to others but when others smile back at us, we know we've won a friend.

Suppressed smile. What now if we can neither answer all the questions of life nor find explanations as to why matters turn out differently the way we plan? If we smile at circumstances that are way beyond our human strength, that means letting God make things work according to His plan.

Low-profile smile. Our eyes show how our heart feels today, but our lips hint a tomorrow where pains remain a thing of the past and we can smile again.

Smile unmasked. In a society that dictates cultures and set norms to live by, we can only be genuinely happy if we conduct ourselves appropriately and simply submit to authorities without losing our sense of self. In this way, we will be at peace with the world and keep a smile in our heart.

Smile mania. We smile with those whom we can be ourselves and be proud to show off what we have been denied of and the antics that make us strangely different -- even if someone close cannot exactly figure out what we are doing.

Smile for keeps. A child's smile reminds us of the things that we have lost and will not have again. For in our search for the illusive youthful looks and childlike smile, we become poker-faced.

Perk-up smile. With a smile that can mend a broken heart and awaken feelings that have long slumbered, we can bring warmth and sunshine into our little corners and transform our spaces into a little heaven here on earth.

Mess-up smile. Sometimes we unknowingly mess up and allow ourselves to be subjective to public bantering just to make people laugh. When people run short of means to get into paid fun, we selfishly make fun of ourselves and smile in the process.

Smile uninhibited. There are moments when we smile because situations call for it (say you just acquired a new bogner blue pedal), and there are occasions when we keep on smiling at something we know nothing about. Either way, we must always wear our smiles but not let smiles wear us out.

Smile economics. even if we limit our smile with what seems like a pout, that doesn't make us less happy devoid of reasons to smile about.