Always time for a hug, smile or pat on the back

We live in a monochromatic society in the United States. Time is money, so let's not waste it.

Do you wake up every morning feeling like every second of your day is already accounted for? So what would you do if you were offered an extra second? You have time to fill in the last crossword puzzle clue. You can touch up your lipstick. Perhaps you belong to an apple pie coterie and you would use that extra second to stuff one more bite of apple pie in your mouth.

Or perhaps you would roll the ball down the alley for one more chance at a strike. Would you crack open one more Poke egg or check your team's status on gishwhes?

I'm a simple person, and I know what I would do with an extra second. If I were in public, I would smile at someone. That's it. Plain and simple. I would spend my extra second trying to brighten someone else's day.

If I were home with my kids, I would hug them tight. Clearly we can't always be so selfless with our time; after all, there's laundry to do, chicken to grill and deadlines to meet. But I'd like to think that there's always time for a smile, a hug, or a pat on the back.

You're one person in a sea of people who all have various things they're dealing with and who could all use a simple message of, "hey, you're not in this alone!"

Lara Kiddle

Grayslake