“You made me happy today — I want you to be happy every single day,” he said as I left him sitting alone.

Hundreds of people were passing by when I walked the street down to my office. None of them was aware of what was going on around them.

I believe we all tend to walk straight to our destination sometimes. Headphones on. Pseudo-meditating. Thinking about everything but what is happening in front of us. Walking just for the sake of it, not paying attention to anything else in the world.

Some things cannot go unnoticed, though. Or do we just pretend to ignore them on purpose?

An old man was there on the corner of the street. He was on his knees, hands on the ground and barely moving. I could see from a considerable distance that his wizened face exuded sadness and resignation. Yet not a single person noticed him as they passed by.

I walked toward him and asked if he needed help. He told me that the only thing he was trying to do for the past twenty minutes was to get up and find somewhere to sit quietly.

I realized he was blind as he grabbed my hand and raised his eyes to the sky. I walked him to the nearest bench so he could sit and spent the next five minutes asking him if he needed anything.

“No! This is all I wanted to do,” he kept repeating as I asked again.

He then went for a quick talk about how bad the world is doing, all because of people’s behavior.

“People don’t know how to be happy,” he said.

“The world goes worse every second because simple acts of kindness are ignored. People don’t know that making others happy actually make them happy too. This is why only few do.”

I didn’t say anything. I slightly smiled.

I haven’t encountered this wisdom for a while now. This almost made me forget that he couldn’t see my reaction.

“You are happy now, aren’t you? You are because you brought joy to my morning. You made me happy today.”

I stood up confirming what he just said, but the old man grabbed my hand again as if he had more to say.

“Most people live in the vicious circle of sadness while only few enjoy the virtuous circle of happiness. Make people sad and see how bad you’ll feel about them and about yourself. The more you do, the more likely you are to drown in the sadness trap. But make people happy, and watch the world become a better place. I don’t need to tell you what happens at this stage, do I? “

I couldn’t agree more, and still wasn’t able to say a single word.

I wish he could see me smiling.

People usually forget about simple acts of kindness and deprive not only others but also themselves of happiness.

I hugged the wise man. I was happy!

People were still around, walking and not paying attention. Why do they refuse to be happy? The recipe is simple, though…

Acts of kindness are the only ingredients needed.

How does happiness translates in your lives? Tell me about it!

I would love to hear your thoughts on Twitter ☺