I love the colour blue. I think it's a shame that it is so often associated with feeling low. For me a bright blue sky on a crisp winters day really lifts my spirits.
In the Arabic language there are many, many, many ways that you can ask someone how they are:
How's it going? / What's your news? / How's your life? How's your family?
Often you get asked these questions one after another in a sort of call and response pattern as part of the initial greetings when you meet up with someone.
My personal favourite "how are you" question is Shlonik? which more accurately translates as "What's your colour?"
The standard response is the same for all the above and much like in English it approximates to "I'm well, how are you?" but I often prefer to answer this particular question with "Azraq" (which means blue -but any colour will do) - not because I felt blue but because it always, always got a hearty laugh from the questioner.
The simple act of stepping outside the standard call and response and connecting with the other person through humour can make a dull day shine like summertime.
Here's me with AbuAli who thought this was one of my better jokes and patiently helped me turn my Babylonian into north Syrian colloquial Arabic more than 20 years ago (showing my age).
So thought for the day - can you step outside your routine for a moment, find a way to connect with another person and spread a little brightness in the world.