Saturday, May 2, 2009

Ha ha ha!


"Always laugh when you can. It is cheap medicine." -- Lord Byron

I had a long weekend.

Friday was our Labor Day, and therefore it was a holiday. So for three days straight, I was just at home lazing about and yes, you guessed it right - watching a movie!

Oh, I had fun watching comedy films. The belly laughs elicited by watching these movies took me right back to being 11 or 12 years old when I laughed in the same way watching cartoons on television.

However, it is 35 years after those original guffaws and the world is now a different place. Today I deal with a lot of significant stressors and challenges. At times these challenges themselves seem so absurd that I find myself laughing. Are we really looking at a possible, very serious flu pandemic that can appropriately be referred to as Pig's fly flu (bird/swine)?

Of course, for a moment it is laughable, but unfortunately, the answer seems to be yes. Nonetheless, I experience these moments of laughter as a balm for my soul and would like to remind you to give yourself permission to do the same.

The challenges we faced each day also serve as a dire reminder of the need for laughter. We all know that laughter has been clinically proven to be effective in stress reduction. They say a good laugh relaxes tense muscles, speeds more oxygen into our system and lowers our blood pressure. Also, laughter can act as a social lubricant creating a sense of connection among those who laugh together.

AND... It's free!

Thankfully, there seem to be no shortage of resources for laughter in our culture. Why, you can simply give yourself permission to watch a few minutes of funny tv or movie, or get on the internet and google jokes and humor easy.

But as usual, I love engaging you in dialogue, so please share how humor and laughter has been a source of stress release and healing in your life.

Laugh away!

7 comments:

Sid Brechin said...

Since you started with Byron.

The time has come the Walrus said to speak of many things. Of shoes and ships and cabbages and Kings and if the sea is boiling hot and weather pigs have wings.

Lewis Carroll

Sid Brechin said...

that should be " of shoes and ships and sealing wax and cabbages and kings "

bubble said...

I love laughing!! Steven makes me laugh all the time and I really get going when me and my brother speak about funny things from our childhood.

Another great post! xxx

Fi from Four Paws and Whiskers said...

Kirst and I watched a tv show together last night - and laughed until we cried... was great :)

MEDICALBOOBOOS said...

Fi beat me too it. I would rather pee myself laughing (not physically possible lol) than be in sad tears. We laughed so hard I thought I would pop a lung. Fi and I sported panda eyes afterwards....
Yes laughter is truly great, especially the feel good chemicals that are released.

Odette Bautista Mikolai said...

thank you everyone for the comments. i am glad you all find time to laugh. it would have been nice to come together and just laugh as we share funny anecdotes of our life, no?
anyway, i have reason to be happy coz pacman won over hatton in their boxing match. it was a short duel as the match ended in the 2nd round. hatton was knocked out twice in the first round and got his third TKO on the 2nd.
i am sure steven was grimacing in disbelief with how brief it was.
i wasn't laughing though...but yes, i am happy!

bubble said...

LOL!! Steven found it hard to admit that Hatton was out classed!! hehe xxx

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