A smile is an act of love.

You can be a presence in the life of another in ways that are unintended and yet helpful and, in their ways, loving. When you encounter someone on the street as you pass by, even a simple smile affirms the value you place on the presence of that person, however short that instant may be. The person is acknowledged and is acknowledged through warmth, through the countenance that you offer. You will not say that I need to be God’s presence for that other person. You simply are offering kindness, and kindness belongs to the universe of love, for without kindness there is no love. Love begins with acceptance, and acceptance only occurs when there is kindness. So that simple smile to a stranger, that brief acknowledgment that there is value in the presence of the other, is an act of love, an illumination of their pathway.