In spite of the rumors that the United States is setting up walls to keep out it’s neighbors, I’m planning a trip to California later this year.
So last week I updated my passport. When I took my passport photo, I made a point of putting on my saddest face. It must have been okay, because the passport office accepted my application.
Passport offices have a few rules that they like to emphasize:
- Bring two passport photos – one for your passport and one that we will keep so that we can keep track of you.
- Don’t smile.
- Fill in your documents correctly.
Have you ever wondered why passport photos are so serious? I get that we are fighting terrorism and international crime… but do we really need a visual disclaimer on our passports: “In case you forget: the world is unsafe.”
Passports are no longer a declaration of where we have been. They are a declaration of where we are going and it appears that our destination is Serious.
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I don’t get why we have the serious photos. Why wouldn’t we want to convey confidence, a hint of fun and yes, even hope? The ban on smiling is not a popular thing. In fact, some researchers have taken a serious look at the passport smile-ban. It turns out that the serious face is not the safest face out there: not smiling has the effect of distorting distort our facial features.
Passports are no longer a declaration of where we have been. They are a declaration of where we are going and it appears that our destination is Serious.
Things are too serious these days
Even at my son’s soccer game, the arena has five simple rules:
1.Soccer is a game.
2.We are teaching our youth how to play well.
3.This is not the world cup.
4.The officials are people too.
5.Everyone has a part.
The rules are helpful and in today’s world we need them. But the Soccer rules forget one thing: It is supposed to be fun. It is a game with a winner and a loser, but can we not enjoy ourselves without taking things too seriously?
What we know is that US politics have changed. In fact, politics are more entertaining and less predictable than the best reality TV. It is more than a little ironic that a famous reality TV star is now the President. Entertainment and politics are married now, but I’m not sure whether having a family is a good idea…
It’s difficult to laugh at politics when the world is becoming more tense. I think we have missed the point of leadership, of soccer and travel. The most important thing to remember isn’t that we should take things seriously, or even that the world is unsafe. The point that we have forgotten is that even now, the world is still mysterious, exciting, full of surprises and yes, it is still fun out there.
Our destination is not our destiny
I don’t think that ditching the rules will solve things. But maybe gazing a little longer at our passports will help us to gain some perspective. If we smiled more, maybe we could recover a sense of hope about our politics and our world?
I get that smiling more won’t make everything better, but do you really think that frowning will accomplish anything?
We have got it wrong. Our destination is not our destiny… HOW we travel tells the most important part of our story. How we live our lives is more important than our goals.
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We have got it wrong. Our destination is not our destiny… HOW we travel tells the most important part of our story. How we live our lives is more important than our goals.
Life does not need to be so serious. In fact, when we smile, we relax and we let more of the world into our minds. We are a little more willing to be creative and to take a risk. We are more inviting.
Fears of terrorism and calamity, politics and youth soccer: We have so many things that can pull us down and remind us that the world is serious and unsafe. Maybe we can all breathe a collective breath and agree to not take things so seriously? It might make our journey a little lighter and who knows, we might just be a little happier along the way?
If you enjoyed this article, you will also want to read some of my other work:
When is Being Good Man a Bad Thing?
Laughing Loudly While Crying into Your Beer
A Serious Guide to Humor at Work
I write articles about wellness, leadership, parenting and personal growth. My hope is to deliver the best content I can to inspire, to inform and to entertain. Sign up for my blog if you want to receive the latest and best of my writing. If you like what I have to say, please share my work with your friends.
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Keep it Real
Photos by Veritas Consulting and smswaby