FERS OPM Medical Retirement: The Unsmiling Eyes - Labor and Employment Legal Blogs Posted by Robert R. McGill | Lawyers.com - Lawyers.com Blog
It has often been noted that the line between tragedy and comedy is a thin and fragile one; of the farcical uttering of King Lear poignantly and subtly emphasized by the Fool or Court Jester; of the indistinguishable demarcation between madness and sanity; and then, of the unmatched contrast between the lips smiling and the eyes saddened. The lips can always be forced to curl upward, revealing a smile; but whether such an expression is genuine depends upon the eyes just a few inches above. The contrast — or the discordance — is like the words of flattery followed by the vengeance of betrayal; what words can fool when actions follow revealing the true intent of man. It is in that flash of a moment — a handshake and a smile; a short laugh at an allegedly funny joke; or too-hearty a laugh or smile; and yet…. When the eyes remain with saddened shadows but the lips curl into a smile, we become disconcerted because of the discordance between the two. How can one describe unsmiling eyes? It cannot be described — for, it is neither a coldness nor blankness; merely, that the brightness of the pupils follow upon a sincere smile of satisfaction, happiness or contentment. You know of the unsmiling eyes when you see it; it is as if the eyes know other eyes of comity; but when that brightness is dimmed and matches not the sincere smile of giving, you know — or sense — that something is amiss. For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who walk around with the smile but with unsmiling...
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