Kanye is so much fun. He's a wonderful person. What I love about

The words of Chrissy Teigen shine with both humor and insight: “Kanye is so much fun. He's a wonderful person. What I love about Kim and Kanye is that I think they save their happy moments and their smiles for themselves rather than sharing everything with the public. And listen, when a camera is shoved in your face trying to take a selfie, you do not want to smile.” Though spoken of celebrities, these words carry with them an ancient wisdom: the value of protecting one’s joy, the sacredness of privacy, and the danger of performing happiness only for the world’s gaze.

To save one’s smiles is to understand that joy need not always be displayed, nor measured by the applause of the crowd. The ancients often taught that the deepest treasures were those kept hidden, safe from the corruption of public judgment. So it is with the smiles of Kim and Kanye, as Teigen describes them. By choosing to reserve their warmth for themselves and their family, they protect their happiness from being devoured by the endless hunger of the public eye. What is guarded is often stronger, for it is shared with those who matter, not performed for those who only watch.

The image of a camera shoved in the face speaks of intrusion, of the modern age where privacy is scarce and individuals are expected to perform cheerfulness at all times. But to refuse such a smile is not bitterness—it is resistance. It is the refusal to let strangers dictate the state of one’s spirit. The ancients too faced this pressure. The emperors of Rome paraded before the crowds, forced to display majesty even in despair. Yet the wisest leaders reserved their truest selves for their closest companions, knowing that constant performance is the death of authenticity.

History gives us examples of this wisdom. Consider Marcus Aurelius, emperor and philosopher. In public, he was the image of strength and composure. Yet in his private writings, later gathered as Meditations, he revealed his vulnerabilities, his doubts, his search for meaning. His public smile was duty, but his truest self was reserved for his own soul. Just as Chrissy Teigen admires Kim and Kanye for saving their smiles for themselves, so too Marcus reminds us that what we preserve in private may be more honest and more enduring than what we display for the crowd.

The smile itself is sacred. When freely given, it can heal, comfort, and inspire. But when demanded, forced, or faked, it becomes a mask that drains the spirit. Teigen’s words remind us that the smile should remain authentic, given at the right time, to the right people, and for the right reasons. The worth of a smile is not in how many see it, but in how true it is when offered.

The lesson here is clear: protect the sacredness of your joy. Do not scatter it heedlessly to those who demand performance. Share it with those you love, and with those who will treasure it. Refuse the pressure to appear endlessly happy, for such illusions erode the soul. Instead, keep your happy moments where they belong—in the circle of trust, intimacy, and authenticity.

Therefore, let us act with wisdom. Smile, not because the world demands it, but because the heart is moved to it. Share joy generously, but not wastefully. Guard your spirit against those who would turn your happiness into spectacle. And remember that the most powerful smiles are those that arise from truth, given not to cameras or strangers, but to those whose love has earned them.

Carry forward this wisdom of Chrissy Teigen: “Save your smiles for yourselves.” Let it remind you that privacy can be a shield, authenticity a treasure, and joy a sacred gift. Do not let the world steal what belongs to your soul. For happiness, like light, shines brightest when it is real, and when it is shared with those who matter most.