The Presdent's Smile

Official White House Photo

He owns a sudden smile and never ever uses it inappropriately. The way he smiles always seems to surprise even when it appeared at the end of one of his jokes. He tells a small and sometimes corny joke, waits for his audience to chuckle, then unveils that wondrous smile, more gum than teeth. Slightly tossing back his head he smiles, showing how truly human he is.

This smile, this pleasure in his own humanity, draws us in and warms us with the love he holds for all of us we who watch that smile respond with our unalloyed enthusiasm, feeling his warmth cradling our hearts, giving us hope. If it were another, sharing a smile with us, we would return the smile and move on awaiting the next line. But we do not do so when basking in the radiance of his smile. We hold tightly to the moment when his smile appeared and warmed us, not wanting to release the moment or the warmth to the everyday.

He moves through tough issues that are often hard to hear by interspersing his with his brilliant smile. Even the stern look he employs when telling some difficult truth is mitigated by the sheer joy of his smile. That look is also notable in that it is a gesture all his own. When he is at his sternest, he rolls his pupils to the right or left corner of his eyes and taps his well manicured forefinger in the same direction, then crosses his hands at the wrist. Seemingly to be completely at ease and relaxed.  This gesture completely disarms the awesome sternness of his words and the look; releasing the tension without letting the listener to forget the total importance of his words.

Those who claim to be expert on speeches or those who deliver them, speak of his brilliance as an orator. The often wax long and breathy about his charisma.  For me though, the smile is the engaging factor. Because for me, all else pales in the grandeur of the charm of that smile.

Official White House Photo