People who dont smile at you when you smile

[PeterandSandy]

Most people smile if you smile at them when out.

The other day i did and the person looked away without smiling.

Wonder what that was about?

@PeterandSandy

why wouldnt you smile are they not used to people smiling at them.

Why are you going around smiling at random strangers? Why should they respond as you wish? I would find being leered at by a stranger very unnerving.

A few weeks ago I was on public transport coming home from hospital after a cancer diagnosis. A cute little girl on the seat in front wanted my attention but I couldn't give it to her, I just couldn't be bothered. I'm sure the child's dad must have thought I was a right miserable bitch.
You don't know what is going on in other peoples lives.

@CrystalCoco

I always think to myself - would you rather be the person that smiles, or the person that didn't smile back

In our neighbourhood most people will smile or say hello as they pass but it wouldn't be the case if we went into the city.

I love that - I'm the person that smiles

Fgs does a smile really hurt. “I don’t know you” “smiling is weird” “if that was me I wouldn’t smile back”
It’s a smile not an invitation. It’s a literal a facial expression. I’d always smile,
I’m either first to offer or reciprocate it.
If I was in mind of my own and didn’t notice a smile then fair but why “if you smiled at me I wouldn’t smile back”. Let’s now teach our children to not smile because it’s a weird thing to do

Most of the people i come across are engrossed and on their phones , talking or texting, non stop, all the way up the street. I cant be bothered with them, and alway wish that they would bump into a lamp post, or into a sign outside a shop and fall over.

I do usually smile, when I come across people who are walking a well behaved dog or a cute puppy,, moreso smiling at the dogs, than the person with the dog.

I will smile to you when I see you to smile at me.

I think you are being unreasonable. No-one is obliged to smile back if they don't wish.

They dont smile back because they are envisioning your death. It's quite sad, a bit gory and no smiling matter @PeterandSandy.

There are plenty of reasons why someone might not smile back, and none of them are any of your business. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred I smile back if people smile at me, but there have certainly been times in my life when I wouldn't have been able to manage it. In fact, I can think of a couple of incidences in my life where I'd barely have been able to process that fact you'd smiled at me, let alone smiled back.

My father physically cannot smile. He's got Parkinson's disease and it's robbed him of his facial expressions. People smile at him and he looks away and pretends not to have seen them because he can't smile back, and it distresses him.

So with all due respect, OP, get stuffed.

I smile at people too - not all of them, not in busy places / cities so much, more likely if our eyes meet walking past each other. Don't worry about if they smile back or not. They might not have noticed.

Because you dont deserve a smile back?

Because smiling at someone and expecting them to smile back is incredibly entitled.

Because women dont owe you pretty.

Do you also tell strangers on buses your life story?

I never smile at strangers when they smile at me. I don't want anyone to talk to me, I think if someone is grinning inanely at me and I smile back they might start talking. No thank you.

Obviously I've had lots of men comment "smile love" because I don't arrange my face to suit them and their mood

RobotValkyrie agree.

I usually smile however ongoing extremely painful chronic mastitis, having to wait 5 weeks for an Breast Clinic appointment & Corona virus that has knocked me for six, and a garden that I love needs doing that frankly I haven't got the energy to do. All mean I'm not very smiley right now.

Don't take it personally I don't when others don't smile back at me.

I seem to have slow emotional processing, often I walk past someone smiling and only think "oh they were smiling at you," having fully passed while I stared at them blankly. Then I think "oh dear I didn't mean to look unfriendly "

Bloodywhitecat and Wingedharpy

OP, nobody owes you a smile. Maybe they are having a bad day, didn't see you, got something on their mind or maybe they thought it was weird just like some posters

@Hbh17

If somebody I didn't know randomly smiled at me in the street I would definitely think that was very ...... unusual (polite version of what I'd actually think). I certainly wouldn't be smiling back!

That's a real shame. What a depressing place you must live!
For some lonely people in the world ( think the elderly ) it brightens up their day.
You may be the only person they have contact with that day, so to not return a tiny smile or have a little chat about the weather, well it's sad..

Smiling as a form of social grease is a learned cultural response. Some cultures don’t smile at strangers. It would indicate you are simple-minded.

@1forAll74

Most of the people i come across are engrossed and on their phones , talking or texting, non stop, all the way up the street. I cant be bothered with them, and alway wish that they would bump into a lamp post, or into a sign outside a shop and fall over.

I do usually smile, when I come across people who are walking a well behaved dog or a cute puppy,, moreso smiling at the dogs, than the person with the dog.

Wishing harm on complete strangers…lovely.

For some lonely people in the world ( think the elderly ) it brightens up their day

How ageist and patronising.
Not all elderly people are lonely and in need of strangers bestowing a smile on them while thinking they’re being kind and wonderful by doing so

Honestly if you’re begrudging strangers for not smiling on demand just because you smiled at them and making wild assumptions about their character because they refuse to perform facial expressions back at you- maybe you need to rethink how “nice” you actually are.

@Dazedandconfused10

I'm not going to smile at someone I don't know. I shouldn't feel like I should have to.

Absolutely this. It's a weird expectation.

If you want to go around smiling at random strangers that cool, go and spread cheer you might make someone’s day.

You can’t hold it against people though if they don’t smile back. There could be a hundred different reasons why not, most of which are nothing to do with you.

Op I’d smile right back at you. The world needs more smiles