great days to be remembered seldom come, but small ones surround us daily.
i do not have a roman holiday, but i have a non smoking day instead.
today a nc-smoking sign easily hooks up my interesting and rewarding experience on the world non smoking day a few years
as a high school student, i, together with my friends, volunteered on a campaign to discourage public smoking by persuacling people in public places to extinguish their cigarettes and put the cigarette ends into our metal boxes. and we would in return give them a memorial sticker bearing patterns and words voicing the theme of the non smoking day.
the first step is never a fast step. after hunting for quite a while, we set our target on a young man who was enjoying his cigarette at a bus stop. embracing the philosophy of "nothing ventured, nothing gained", we summoned up all our courage,walked up and asked, "sir, would you please not smoke in public places?" "it is none of your business! why are you so busily engaged in such things? go and mind your own exams!" he was great, i believed, for he was able to drag on his cigarette while at the same time not giving his tongue a break. and i further found out that for this man, such words as "good for your health" or "good for common courtesy" had long lost their appeal. maybe such kind of situation should call for some other policy. i managed a smile, blended with sweet words and tried to dilute his resistance. and when we put the sticker on his clothes, he was lingering over the joy of having done us "a big favor."
now you see, maybe flattery should be vindicated, for to please is a great step toward persuading and a smile is a curve that sets everything straight.