What a difference a smile makes!

Our oldest was really nervous to go to church on Sunday. She felt so worried about not having any daddy or any friends in a different place (we are going with Grandma and Grandpa for a little while). I talked to her about making new friends, and making sure she smiled at everyone instead of crying or frowning.

I was so proud of her. She tried so hard! We sat behind a really nice family with four darling kids. One of them, a little girl, turned around to peek at our girls. Our 5-year-old was shy at first, but I watched her out of the corner of my eye. She took a deep breath and….smiled. :) The little girl turned back around. Our daughter seemed perplexed, but I gave her a thumbs-up. When the little girl in front turned around for another peek, our daughter was brave and smiled again. :) This time, the girl smiled back.

She was elated! I was so proud of her. She can be so shy, and I completely understand how that feels, so I was so proud of her for making such an effort to be friendly.

Next I saw her sifting through my purse. She found a scrap of paper and a pen and drew a smiley face and wrote, “hi!” She then folded it into a microscopic wad and passed it to the little girl. The new little friend then took a minute, folded up her own little note, and passed it back.


I don’t care if it was irreverent or not to be doing in church. I was SO happy and so proud of my daughter. As the meeting progressed, so did the little notes, ending with one to my daughter that said, “Do you want to be pen pals?”

As we had talked that morning, I had sensed my daughter’s true worry and loneliness. I had prayed silently on the way into church that she would be blessed and helped in this difficult time for her. I know that Heavenly Father hears and answers our prayers, and that He loves all of His children and cares deeply for them. I am so grateful for that sweet little girl, and for her kind parents who let her write notes to my daughter. :)

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