The Power of Connection

I like the emotions in this piece of street art in Brussels. It made me think of the impact of seeing a smile.

The day after I passed this beautiful piece, I was out for a run and I was paying more attention to the people I passed. Some are happy, or at least seem so, and are open for connection, looking for eye-contact and smiling. Some are not. Keeping their head down, looking away, or just looking forward.

It struck me how good it makes me feel when I can make a quick connection with someone, a fraction of a second.

Yes, I run fast.

Just kidding 😉.

But this brief moment of seeing joy or happiness in another person and be able to participate in that, to connect with that, is stunningly amazing (it’s possible you think I’m crazy, but damn, that’s easy happiness! I guess my happiness challenge starts paying off 😇).

I also passed a woman during that run who gave me the opposite feeling. She looked sad, head down, moving slowly, not looking up when I passed her. I decided to give her my usual hello anyways.

I didn’t know it at that time, but is was not the last time I would see her…

While continuing my run, I felt bad for her. I couldn’t really know if she was doing well or not, but I believe she was quite miserable.

I was out for a long run, so I passed her a second time. I decided to put a bit more energy in my hello and tried to add an empathetic smile (sincere empathy, not pity!). She looked up with a sad and tired face but gave a short hello back.

Yes! Connection!

A story is a story, and so it goes that I passed her a 3rd time. And this time she saw me coming. I tried to pull out my best smile when I passed her, and she gave a little one back. I would say half a smile.

No matter what her actual state was, maybe a moment of grief, just an off-day, or a long depression, I think it’s quite normal to close ourselves off from the world when we feel bad. We want to avoid contact, and definitely avoid connection (vulnerability risk!).

But I think there’s quite some power in opening our eyes and energy to the world around us, ESPECIALLY when we’re feeling down. Maybe there is a strange(r) runner that is open for a quick connection, a sharing of empathy or a giving of positive energy; or a friend or family member that could be there for you.

Connection is powerful. We are social animals. It’s one of the biggest contributors to a happy, fulfilling life. Seek it out, especially when feeling down.

No idea if my small act of kindness could make a difference, but I’d like to think that half a smile is better than no smile!