This is a famous quote from the Dalai Lama. Yesterday, we met a man who treated us with so much unexpected kindness. It was a seemingly small thing, but it brightened our day.

We were out running some errants in Fürstenfeldbruck and running a bit late already, when I remembered I wanted to buy black beans in order to make black bean quinoa burgers tomorrow. (Sorry, the recipe is in Dutch.) The beans have to be soaked overnight, so we had to buy them before returning home. As we drove into town, we had passed a whole food store that was sure to sell black beans, so that’s where we went.

A very harmonious couple…

Entering the store, we also found ginger and passed a stand with hair care products which demanded Christophe’s attention. I walked on as he explored, and we reunited at the check out counter. Christophe with a new brand of shampoo to try out, and I with a small stub of ginger and a packet of dried black beans. The man at the check out counter smilingly looked us over and stated that he was very pleased to see some new faces. And then he went on to say that we are obviously special people and that we clearly are a very harmonious couple.

Isn’t that the nicest thing ever? It was very spontaneous and heartfelt, and we were both tickled pink with pleasure. We thanked him for his kindness and left the store almost skipping.

So there you have it. These moments in life are precious. Much more precious than material things and money. Happiness is made up of little things. A smile, a compliment, random kindness…

A smile costs nothing, but gives a lot

A smile costs nothing, but gives a lot.
It enriches those who receive it without making poorer those who give it.
A smile takes only a moment, but the memory of it can last forever.
No one is so rich, or so mighty, that they can get a long without a smile.
And no one is so poor that they cannot be made richer by a smile.
A smile creates happiness in the home, fosters goodwill in business and is the counter sign of friendship.
A smile brings rest to the weary, cheer to the discouraged, sunshine to the sad and is nature’s best cure for trouble.
Yet it cannot be bought, begged, borrowed, or stolen for it is of no value to anyone until it is given away.
Some people are too tired to give a smile so give them one of yours as no one needs a smile so much as he who has no more of his own to give.

Author unknown