It is truly amazing what someone’s genuine smile can do to a person. Whether you are the one who smiles, or you see someone smiling, this simple gesture has the power to light up your mood and make even the most awful day a little bit better.
To a person who is smiling, this happy facial expression can have some amazing health benefits. Smiling can reduce blood pressure, pain, and stress, strengthen the immune system, increase endurance, and generally offer a mood boost which helps our body release cortisol and endorphins.
And to a person who is in the presence of a radiant smile, this also causes a release of feel-good hormones. No one can deny it – this universally recognized sign of happiness and well-being is simply contagious!
You don’t have to know why other people are smiling nor do you have to find it funny or hilarious. When you see a person flexing their facial muscles from one side of the mouth to the other in a curved line – you cannot help but do the same!
Smiling is not only reserved for people, though. Believe it or not, some animals smile, too. Especially those closest to us – cats and dogs!
Maybe their “smile” doesn’t have the same meaning as ours, but they are definitely able to feel and understand our emotions. They are well aware when we are happy, and since they are famous for being little imitators, they often mimic our facial expressions. Hence, the smile!
Today we are talking about the case of a kitten with precisely that kind of smile. This is a story about Blossom, a feline from Albuquerque, New Mexico, whose smile took the world of the Internet by storm.
Four years ago, Lauren Boutz, a biochemistry student at the time and an avid cat lover, shared several pictures of her new kittens. Lauren was, actually, a foster cat mom for the City of Albuquerque Animal Welfare Department, and she loves helping the kittens in need.
At the time, she was fostering three new kittens – Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup whom she, as you may have noticed, named after the Powerpuff Girls. She called them her adorable Powerpurr Girls.
(Credit: @biochem_kitten)
All three of the kittens were adorable, as per usual. They were around 5 weeks old, purring their way into everyone’s hearts.
One day, Lauren decided to share their cuteness with her Facebook friends. She gathered all three of them, put them on her red armchair, and asked her partner Gary to take a photo or two.
Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup were all such natural posers. They loved the camera and remained still for the most part. However, there was one among them who stole the whole show.
It was Blossom and her unrealistic smile. It was as though she was well aware of what “Say cheese!” actually means. She stretched her little feline mouth, raised her whiskers while slightly closing her eyes, and voilà! Just like that, an instant internet sensation was created!
(Credit: @biochem_kitten)
Lauren posted those pictures on October 24, and the one with Blossom smiling collected more than 72 000 likes and 55 000 comments from people all around the world. What was intended to be shared with a couple of friends, soon turned into a worldwide thing.
Blossom’s career did not stop with Facebook. Soon after, Michelle, a 21-year-old woman and cat lover from Las Vegas, posted that picture on her Twitter account with the caption, “I’m melting!” jokingly adding how she begs people to not tell her cats she wants this one to be hers, too.
On Twitter, Blossom, to everyone’s surprise, gained an incredible 1.2 million likes and shares and even more sweet comments. People were saying how her cuteness was to die for. They wrote how adorable Blossom was and posted hundreds of heart eyes emojis.
People shared their drawings of her, digital illustrations, and their overall admiration. One thing was certain: Blossom has won the hearts of people all over the world!
Even today, after four years, people fondly remember this adorable smiling kitty. They often wonder where she is, how she is, and if she’s still smiling.
Nowadays, Blossom is adopted and has a wonderful home and a furry feline sibling. She might not be smiling that often because of all of that burden of a sassy attitude, but she’s still adorable, nevertheless!
