Going to Spread Sunshine 🌸

Salima was no ordinary girl. She had a gift—one that did not require wealth or status, but something far more valuable: kindness. In her small town, where people were often too busy to notice one another, Salima made sure that no one felt invisible. Every morning, as she walked to school, she made it her mission to spread smiles and brighten the day of those she met.

She would leave her house just after Fajr prayer, carrying her school bag over her shoulder and a heart full of warmth. The street she walked every morning was lined with all sorts of people—some rushing to work, others heading to college, and a few sitting outside their small shops, waiting for customers. Salima knew most of them by name, and those she didn’t, she made sure to greet anyway.

“Assalamu Alaikum, Uncle Karim! May your shop be full of blessings today,” she would say to the elderly shopkeeper arranging his goods.

“Wa Alaikum Assalam, my dear Salima. You bring barakah just by passing by,” he would reply, his wrinkled face lighting up with a grateful smile.

Further down the street, she would spot Hanan, a college student who always seemed overwhelmed with books and papers. “Hanan, I just know you’ll ace your exam today. You’ve worked so hard!” Salima would say, and the worried girl would sigh with relief, as if those words alone lifted the weight from her shoulders.

Then there was little Zayd, the shy boy who struggled to make friends. Salima would always take a moment to ask about his day, complimenting his drawings or just giving him a high five. “You’re amazing, Zayd. I hope you know that.” His small face would light up, and for the rest of the day, he would walk a little taller.

Salima’s journey to school took no more than twenty minutes, but in that short time, she made a difference in the lives of so many. She didn’t just greet people—she saw them. She made them feel valued. And her kindness was contagious. The baker, inspired by her warmth, started offering free bread to those in need. The taxi driver, who often grumbled about his work, found himself greeting passengers with a newfound cheerfulness. Even the usually grumpy newspaper seller began to exchange kind words with his customers.

One day, as she was about to cross the street, an old woman stopped her. “My dear child, I have seen you do this every day—bringing smiles, spreading goodness. What makes you so kind?”

Salima smiled and replied, “The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said, ‘A smile is charity.’ I may not have much to give, but I can give kindness. And I believe that kindness always comes back.”

The old woman patted her head with admiration. “You are a blessing to this world, my child.”

As the days passed, people began to look forward to seeing Salima. Some even started their mornings with a simple but powerful habit—greeting others with warmth, just as she did. The town, once filled with hurried footsteps and distracted minds, slowly became a place of shared smiles and kind words.

Years later, long after Salima had grown up and moved to another city, the people of her hometown still remembered her. They spoke of the girl who, with nothing but a kind heart, changed the spirit of their town. And every time someone smiled at a stranger or offered a kind word, they would say, “Salima taught us this.”

Indeed, Salima’s gift was never in what she owned, but in what she gave. And the world was brighter because of it.