it all started with a smile.
it was very crowded on saturday at amritapuri. many were there for amma’s darshan. i came across a mother and her young daughter as i was passing the dining area. the girl smiled at me. i smiled back and asked, “where are you from?”
“palakkad,” came the reply. the mother explained that the girl knew me, as she had attended the children’s camp here in the ashram back in 2006.
“oh, that’s nice,” i said. “which class are you in now?” i asked.
“plus one,” she said, still smiling.
“so you were in 5th standard at that time?”
“yes.”
“do you remember anything from the camp?”
“yes.”
“what do you remember?” i asked.
“swamiji told us to smile,” she said.
“aha! do you remember that?”
“yes, very much.”
“she has been smiling continuously since the camp,” said her mother.
i reminded her – sri krishna was smiling, amma is smiling, too — throughout their life. keep smiling…
and she, manjusha, stood there with a beautiful smile.