Editor’s Note: Kayla’s Korner will be a reoccurring column that deals with mental health and teenage issues.

Smile. I hope that made you smile! To me, a smile could help anyone. Even if you are having the worst day of your life or the best day, a smile could always make it a little bit better.

I’m going to explain some of my easy steps to make someone smile.

Step 1: Make a joke. Probably a corny one that no one would laugh at, but it would make them smile.

Step 2: Smile first. If you see someone in the hallway, give them a smile, it could in fact make them smile back.

Step 3: Give a compliment. Say you like their shoes or their outfit. This will make them feel good and then smile.

Step 4: Help someone. Hold the door open or help someone pick their books up if they fell.

Step 5: Start a conversation. If you see someone that is down or look like they are having a bad day, ask them if they are okay. Talk to them and tell them that if they ever need to talk that they can talk to you.

But why should you make someone smile?

I believe that this could save someone’s life. You never know what people are going through and even just making them smile for one second could make it all worthwhile.

I remember during my junior year, I would walk around, thinking suicidal thoughts. Someone I was not really friends with would smile at me, just because, and it all went away. It of course did not go away forever, but it went away for a few minutes.

Whenever someone did this, I would always question myself. Why are they smiling at me? Were they smiling at someone behind me or in front of me?

But eventually, it would just make me happy. It made me smile.

You never know if someone is planning on harming themselves or ending their lives. If you give them that one smile, they could think ‘today is not the day.’

It is a nice thing to do. You can use any of the steps above to make someone’s day. You could even make some friends out of it!

Coming next: Kayla’s Korner will be continuing with weekly articles. Next week will discuss what to do if you are feeling down and not yourself.