I hear some actors keep a sad thought or memory tucked away to help them with scenes where they might need to cry. I think we should each try to find the opposite; a happy memory, something to lift us up on those inevitable down days. I’m saying this because I think I just found mine!

I had some work in Glasgow today. I was on a really tight schedule, which meant I would have no time for myself (or my own work) all day. I was having one of those days, the train was completely packed out and the conversation going on around me seemed to be particularly inane. On top of all that, I had a bit of a headache.

Walking briskly across the concourse, I fished some change from my pocket. There was usually someone at the exit selling The Big Issue (a magazine that helps homeless folk earn a living).

As the crowd parted ways at the bottom of the concourse, I saw someone selling the Big Issue. You had to be homeless to sell the Big Issue. She really looked like she’d been sleeping rough. Her clothes were ragged and she obviously hadn’t had a scrub up for quite a while.

As I approached the exit, I saw that she was also rocking from side to side. At first I thought maybe she was trying to keep warm against the biting wind. But she wasn’t, she was moving in time to a tune. I couldn’t hear her, but I could see her lips moving.

As I got closer, I saw a white cane hanging from her elbow and noticed that she had sunken eyes. She was blind, dirty and living on the streets. I came closer and through the noise of the traffic and the commuters I heard her sing the immortal line, “… and I think to myself, what a wonderful world!”

I bought her last magazine for twice what I’d originally intended. She thanked me, then she picked up her stuff and went tapping off along the pavement - still singing!

So, I have my happy memory for the day. And I think it will stay with me a long, long time. Feel free to borrow it if you like.

A farmer had some puppies he needed to sell. As he was putting up a sign to sell the puppies, he felt a pull on his trousers. He looked down into the eyes of a little boy.

“Sir,” he said, “I want to buy one of your puppies.”

“Well,” said the farmer, “these puppies come from fine parents and cost a large number of money.”

The boy dropped his head for a moment. Then reaching deep into his pocket, he pulled out a handful of change.

“I’ve got 89 cents. Is that enough at least to take a look?”

“Sure,” said the farmer. “Here, Dolly!” he called. Out from the doghouse ran Dolly followed by four little balls of fur.

The little boy pressed his face against the fence. His eyes danced with joy. As the dogs made their way to the fence, the little boy noticed something else moving inside the doghouse.

Slowly another little fur ball appeared, this one noticeably smaller, wobbling (蹒跚) toward the others, doing its best to catch up.

“I want that one, ” the little boy said, pointing to the little dog.

The farmer knelt down at the boy’s side and said, “Son, you don’t want that puppy. He will never be able to run and play with you like these other dogs would.”

Hearing that, the little boy stepped back from the fence, reached down, and began rolling up one leg of his trousers. There was a disabled (残疾的) leg with a specially made shoe attached to it. Looking back up at the farmer, he said, “You see, sir, I don’t run too well myself, and he will need someone who understands.”

With tears in his eyes, the farmer reached down and picked up the little pup. Holding it carefully he handed it to the little boy.

“How much?” asked the little boy.

“No charge (收费),” answered the farmer, “There’s no charge for love and understanding.”

A couple of weeks ago, a few friends and I had an opportunity to attend a dear friend’s wedding in New York. After the wedding and reception, rather accidentally four of us gathered in a hotel room and began to explore the deeper meaning of life and death. What does it mean to live truly? If we are all getting closer to death, is all the material accumulation worth it? It is not exactly the type of conversations one has at a wedding.

While the answers varied from person to person, I was left with more questions than answers and a feeling of gratefulness to be surrounded by friends who were asking the “right” questions. As the clock kept ticking past 3 am, one of the roommates suggested we watch a short film titled “Last Days of Zach Sobiech”. The premise of the film is about a teenager’s journey through the last days of his terminal illness. The film brought up a lot of mixed emotions but one quote that stood out for me was Zach, s simple explanation of happiness, “What makes one happy is seeing someone else smile because you put it there.” By 4 am, there was this energy in the room that had to be shared! With a few packages of post-it notes and sharpies, we hit the halls of the hotel. We decided to leave short inspirational words on guests’ doors, so when they open their doors few hours later a smile would turn up.

We ended up tagging all the doors until we ran out of post-it notes. The note on the door of the newly-weds properly said, “Where there is love, there is life.”