Every time I run through our neighborhood or walk the streets, there are always people out, walking, playing with kids, socializing with neighbors. I've been trying to say hi to everyone I pass, young or old, homeless or in their yard, for variety of purposes including: to spread cheerful thoughts, to become more accepted by our neighbors, to see the surprise on people's faces when I acknowledge them, and to see whether or not they respond. I tried this in St. Louis too as sort of a social experiment to see the difference in frequency of responses based on race, perceived socioeconomic status, male/female, etc. and noticed that people's responses did differ greatly. Anyway, the point of this rambling is that I think it's very interesting to see people smile in surprise at a stranger's kindness or simply their acknowledgment. It's so much easier to ignore homeless people or turn your head to people different than you, but I think there is a lot of power in a smile. You never know whose day you could help turn around :)
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