Gladden the Heart

I remember when I was quite young I heard the expression “to gladden the heart”.  It was years before I actually understood what it meant.  The first time I read this poem I was reminded of that expression.  When I came across the poem again this morng  it lightened my spirit once more.  Smiling is infectiousYou catch it like the fluWhen someone smiled at me todayI started smiling too I walked around a cornerAnd someone saw me grinWhen he smiled I realisedI had passed it onto him I thought about a smileAnd realised its worthA single smile like mineCould travel round the earth So if you feel a smile beginDon’t leave it undetectedStart an epidemic and get the world infected.Spike Milligan