A smile.

by Deva Shantay

On a recent journey to southern China, I spent time in a rural village where the indigenous Dong people lived and experienced something truly remarkable—their smiles.

With a smile, they welcomed us into their lives. In the West, I rarely come across smiles like that. They’re hidden, reserved for a select few, guarded. Sometimes, they even feel transactional or insincere—used to manipulate, persuade, or mask true intentions.

With the Dong people, there was nothing behind these smiles except genuine warmth and enthusiasm. Not polite half-smiles or tight-lipped grins, but full, uninhibited smiles—teeth showing, faces glowing. Their beautiful smiles are now etched in my memory.

Kindness radiated from them. Joy poured out. These were the smiles of truly happy people—and that struck me. It made me realize how rarely I see that kind of happiness in the US. For all we have in the West, look at what we may have lost—our smiles.

The Dong people have so little, yet somehow, they have so much. I was deeply touched by their smiles and am profoundly grateful for the chance to live among them, even for a short while.