World Smile Day October 7, 2022 history significance
Sometimes all it takes to make the day better is a smile, whether it’s one someone gives to you, or one you share with another. Little acts of kindness can bring a shining smile to someone who has otherwise had a terrible day, and it can change everything that follows.
Whether it’s just a simple compliment, a cheery hello, or a gift of something small to help brighten their day, World Smile Day encourages you to take action to bring a few more smiles into the world.
History of World Smile Day
It was a simple thing, a circle with a few dots and an upturned curve, but put together Harvey Ball created one of the most iconic symbols the world had ever seen, and it would quickly come to infect everything from graffiti to modern day emoji’s.
We are, of course, talking about the smiley face, arguably the first emoji to enter the world. Harvey would later express concern that the sheer commercialization of his little symbol would strip it of its original intent and meaning.
It was out of this concern that he created World Smile Day, a day devoted to the spreading of simple joy and love to everyone, regardless of race, gender, or geographic location.
Harvey sadly passed from this world in 2001, but the foundation he helped create, the Harvey Ball World Smile Foundation, has carried forth his message of simple peace and love as the sponsor of World Smile Day every year.
Whether you’re simply expressing a bit of silliness or doing a small act of kindness to help someone smile, World Smile Day is your opportunity to help brighten the world and make the world a better place through the simple power of the smile.
Learn about World Smile Day
World Smile Day is the perfect day to make others smile while also ensuring you have a smile on your face as well. There are a lot of events that go on around the globe on World Smile Day, all of which have been designed to make people feel happier and to share great moments with others. We see associations, organizations, people, and schools get involved, with many different activities going on that can make a person smile. This includes sending lovely messages to people and giving food to those who need it.
Interesting information and facts about World Smile Day and smiling itself…
Let’s take a look at some interesting and surprising facts about World Smile Day. For example, did you know that 470 iterations of the smileys were made for Internet emoticons in 1999? That’s a lot of smiley faces, isn’t it?
Not only does the smiley face bring a lot of joy to people, but it’s making a lot of money too! Well, we suppose money makes people smile as well, right? We are sure that the guys in London, England, are smiling when they look at how much money the Smiley Company office is bringing in. After all, it is worth over $55 million per annum!
Did you also know that happiness is biological? When you smile, endorphins are created. These are neurotransmitters that cause feelings of pleasure. And, do you know why the color yellow was used for the smiley face? Well, this one you might be able to guess! Yellow is the symbol of cheerfulness, so what better color for a smiley face?
How to celebrate World Smile Day
It all starts with keeping your eyes and heart open to the people around you, and recognizing when someone nearby could use a momentary lift to their day.
Everyone can make a difference on World Smile Day, just by being caring and compassionate and helping those around them have the best day they can have. Those who are truly ambitious can check out the World Smile Day website and look into becoming a World Smile Day ambassador.
World Smile Day Ambassador’s go the extra mile in setting up events at local businesses, schools, parks, even online to help spread the simple joy of a smile to the world.
There are a number of different things that you can do on World Smile Day to make a difference. There are a lot of great suggestions online. This includes delivering smile certificates to people, sending smile cards, giving meals to the homeless, hospital events, visiting nursing homes, balloon releases with World Smile Day messages, and much more! You can do things that make your loved ones smile, as well as the wider community too. It does not always need to be something big and grand either. There are plenty of small things that we can all do to make people feel happier.
It is also important to remember that you should be smiling on World Smile Day! We often tend to forget about ourselves because we are so busy thinking about other people. What makes you happy? What is going to make you smile? A lot of people smile when they are helping others, so it is one big circle of happiness! Of course, there are plenty of other things that could make you smile as well. You may simply want to have an hour to yourself so you can watch your favorite film or television program, for example.
Whatever you do decide to do on World Smile Day, there is one important ingredient: a smile!
