Find something to laugh about

I was on my hands and knees recently, deep into a bed of irises and peonies, when I heard joyous laughter. I quit weeding long enough to stand up and turn around. A lady was stopped at the corner stop sign. She said that when she looked over at the flowers, all she saw was feet. She had wondered if it was some new kind of garden decoration. She thanked me for making her laugh, then she drove away with a smile on her face.
I considered the day a success. Any time I can make someone laugh, even for a few seconds, it is a day well-spent. I am thinking about making some concrete feet and parking them in the foliage in case somebody else needs an excuse to chuckle.
On the other hand, maybe this isn’t such a good idea. We live a block from the jail and a passing deputy might think it was an escaped prisoner hiding amongst the foliage. Or maybe someone would think it was a drunk passed out on the way home from a nearby drinking establishment like one poor soul did a few years ago. That type of yard art might not be such a good idea, after all.
Sometimes I have a bit of a sideways view of life. I was reminded of this at a meeting I recently attended. One of the newcomers wore a T-shirt bearing a Bible verse. The end of the verse looked like it said “… devotion to your elves.” Elves? I don’t remember elves in the Bible. Maybe it was religion according to a Hobbit or some other fictional character. I kept staring at the guy, wondering what elves had to do with a Bible verse. Then he sat up and I realized it said,  “yourselves” not “your elves.” His shirt had wrinkled, concealing the “s” that completely changed the meaning of the verse.
A day or so later I got into our new car. It took me a full five minutes to figure out how to turn the windshield wipers off. I had mistakenly turned them on while trying to put the car into reverse. For awhile, I was afraid I was going to have to drive with the wipers on forever. I finally consulted the manual that came with the vehicle. Do not tell me you have never been stymied by new technology or unfamiliar controls. I know you have.
Without the ability to find humor in everyday occurrences, life would be depressing indeed. Laughter is as important as water, food and clean air. It relieves stress and generally leaves us more relaxed and better able to deal with whatever life throws at us.
There is anecdotal evidence that laughter helps relieves pain. Way back when, Norman Cousins, a political journalist, author and professor, wrote that he used humor to help him deal with chronic pain. He “made the joyous discovery that ten minutes of genuine belly laughter had an anesthetic effect and would give me at least two hours of pain-free sleep.”
There is something called laughter yoga and even laughter clubs which are supposed to provide physiological and psychological benefits.
These gatherings involve forced laughter that turns into real and contagious laughter. People getting together and paying to laugh? Is that what is meant by laughing all the way to the bank for the owners? Real life is funny enough without having to pay for a class on something that comes naturally.
We should all strive to find humor in our everyday lives. After all, nobody likes a person who never smiles and who complains all the time.
Comedian Yakov Smirnoff once said, “Everybody laughs the same in every language because laughter is a universal connection.” How better to connect with others than to share a giggle or two. I hope you take time out of your day to find the joy in life. Take the time to laugh. It will do you good.[[In-content Ad]]