This I Believe

I believe in the strength of a smile. Non-verbal communication is what really sets the tone, length, subject, or even profundity of a conversation. Sometimes, words are not even needed to communicate. Running through the hallways from class to class, I do not always have the time to stop and talk to my friends. Yet, the simple expression of a smile can make-up for everything that I was to say. A smile can start or end a conversation. It can be a conversation within itself. Some people may see it as a simple friendly gesture, but I believe that it is so much more.

My older brother has always been the entertainer of the family. He knows exactly how to get my mother in a good mood when she is having a bad day, which is not an easy task for the rest of the family. Come to think of it, it seems like he knows exactly how to cheer everybody up! People always say that he is the luckiest guy in the world because he never stops smiling and always has something positive to say. He creates a constant cheerful vibe around him that makes any person be happy to be with him. I always feel blessed and thankful to have such an extraordinary brother. This is the reason why I remember the day without his smiles. One cold fall morning, as our mother was waking us up to school, my brother did not get up. After he was rushed to the hospital, we found out that he had fallen into a coma and had to have emergency brain surgery performed due to a very rare and unforeseeable condition. Those eight hours in the waiting room of the hospital were the longest and hardest hours of my life. Many of our friends and family came for support, but that didn't comfort me much. I needed my brother there, I needed his smile. But, nobody smiled. I have never seen my mother and father so depressed.

Hour after hour we waited. Finally, as the elevator door opened, the nurses rolled my brother out on his bed. Still, no smile. They took him to a recovery room as the doctor came to speak with us and informed us that the surgery went as planned. The doctor said to give him some time and hopefully he will be conscious and speaking soon. Waiting to talk to him drained my family and me even more. Here was my brother - a young man who was always so strong and optimistic - who was yesterday just smiling, now laying in front of my eyes so helpless and hurt. But, what I will never forget is that moment when he finally did reached consciousness. It was obvious that he was hurting and the pain was reflected in his eyes. He was so weak and so vulnerable. As we gathered around him and asked him how he was feeling, he slowly formed a broken smile. Although he didn't have strength to say or do much more, that smile was enough. That smile is the reason I was able to go to sleep that night. That smile calmed me; it let me know that everything was going to be ok. I knew that he would pull through and I had faith that he would return back to the same person that he was before. And he did.

I believe in smiles. I believe in their intentions and their comfort. I believe in their simplicity and complexity. I believe in their ability to change someone's mood or outlook on life. Whether it is used in typical everyday situations amongst strangers, like passing someone in the store, or amongst friends or family between conversations, I believe that they make a difference. It has become so much more than just a gesture to me; it is a symbol of comfort, relief, and happiness.

Oksana Kozlovskaya

Oksana Kozlovskaya