Sunrise Smiles and Kite Flying
Each time I travel to a new land I like to greet it by waking up for the sunrise. Shanghai not only provided me with a beautiful view of the skyline in the morning but also brought about the beautiful soul pictured above.
I have no idea what his name is. He said a lot to me in Mandarin, in which I responded with smiles and shoulder shrugs. He handed over his kite to me and motioned for me to reel it in. We posed for pictures, giggled, and gave each other a high five before I continued on my way. This interaction happened again the following mornings. Smiles, shrugs, and high fives became our method of communicating.
We didn't speak the same language out of our mouths, but we spoke the same language in our hearts... the universal language*... the language of love that is told through smiles and acts of kindness. When I think of Shanghai, I'll think of the people, specifically this man, and how he greeted me with kindness and love.
May we all speak the universal language.
*Note: The first time I heard about the universal language was in Paulo Coelho's book, The Alchemist. It's about a boy who goes after his dreams. I highly recommend reading it.