On its face, smiling tells a story. But the story told by the reflex, or I suppose decision, to flash the pearly whites can be complex and originate from a wide range of what might seem like incompatible feelings. We smile for a variety of reasons. We smile when we are happy, when we are uncomfortable, to placate, and sometimes when we are simply unsure of what else to say. A smile could just as easily manifest itself as a shrug, a hug, laughter, silence, or even, in the most extreme cases, a roundhouse kick to the side of a disheveled head. (more…)
