Bridget shares advice from a meditation teacher: use your two index fingers to lift your mouth into a smile each day. The practice releases endorphins, boosts mood and immune health, and costs nothing. Ajahn Brahm at the Perth Buddhist temple taught her this simple act of self-praise.
Hello, it's Bridget. I'm back again, sitting in my porch, ready to tell you another Corona Jack and Norrie. It's a lovely wee story called The Two Finger Smile. Praise saves us money, enriches our relationships, and creates happiness. We need to spread more of it around. The hardest person to give any. Praise to is ourself. I was brought up to believe that someone who praises themself becomes big-headed. That's not so. They become big-hearted. Praising our good qualities to ourself is positively encouraging them. When I was a student, my first meditation teacher gave me some practical advice. He began by asking me the first thing I did after getting up in the morning. I go to the bathroom, I said. Is there a mirror in your bathroom? he inquired. Of course. Good, he said. Now every morning, even before you brush your teeth, I want you to look in that mirror and smile at yourself. Sir, I began to protest, I am a student. Sometimes I go to bed very late and get up in the morning not feeling my best. Some mornings I would be frightened to look at myself in the mirror, let alone smile. He chuckles, looked me in the eye and said, if you cannot manage a natural smile, then take your 2 index fingers, place one on each corner of your mouth and push up Like this. And he showed me. He looked ridiculous. I giggled. He ordered me to try it. I think you should try it. So I did. The very next morning, I dragged myself out of bed and staggered to the bathroom. I looked at myself in the mirror. Ugh, it was not a pretty sight. A natural smile was a non-starter, so I took my two index fingers, placed one on each corner of my mouth, and pushed up. I couldn't help grinning once there was a natural smile. I saw the student in the mirror smiling at me, so I smiled even more. The man in the mirror smiled even more. In a few seconds. We ended up laughing together. I continued that practice every morning for 2 years. Every morning, no matter how I felt when I got out of bed, I was soon laughing at myself in the mirror, usually with the help of 1 or 2 fingers. People say I smile a lot these days. Perhaps the muscles around my mouth got kind of stuck in that position. We can try the 2 finger trick any time of the day. It is especially useful when we feel sick, fed up, or downright depressed. Laughter has been proven to release endorphins into our bloodstream, which strengthens our immune system and makes us feel happy. It helps us see the 998 good bricks in our wall Not only the 2 bad bricks. Please refer to previous Jekanore if you're not sure what that means. And laughter makes us look beautiful. That's why I sometimes call our Perth Buddhist temple Ajahn Brahm's beauty salon. So there you go, another wee tip about smiling, another motivation to smile. You look more beautiful when you smile, you feel better, and give it a go. Use your 2 fingers, Push that face up and see how you get on. Let me know. I'd love to hear what you thought of this Corona Jackanory, and thank you for listening. Thank you so much for all the feedback, and yeah, thanks a million. Let's connect online somewhere. Thank you. Bye bye.
