“Joy’s smile is much closer to tears than laughter.”

Victor Hugo

It’s not easy to smile when you’re in the midst of a difficult situation.  It’s not easy to smile when you see someone is hurting.  It’s not easy to smile when you encounter injustice and inequality.  It’s not easy to smile when you feel powerless, hungry and without hope.

It is not easy, but it is a bold step forward.

“And the smile that is worth the praises of earth is the smile that shines through tears.”

Ella Wheeler Wilcox, Poet