Laugh, and the world laughs with you

There is a radio commercial where Sally Field tells us that she only has one body so she takes Boniva (makes me think of cows for some strange reason – bovine?).

When I hear this commercial I realize that I only have one body too! Sally Field and I have so much in common. I better take care of it! I promise myself that I will back off the sugar, increase the exercise, blah blah blah. But by the time I get to where I am going, the commercial and subsequent resolutions have been forgotten.

Here is something you can do for your one and only body that doesn’t require you to forgo goodies or sweat: laugh more. Have a sense of humor. Studies, done by real doctors, have shown that people who have a sense of humor are not only happier, they are healthier. They have a stronger will to live, fight off disease better, have fewer heart problems, and have a better quality of life.

When you don’t feel like laughing, fake it. If you fake it for a while you will start to feel it. I can trick myself into thinking that I am having fun, or that an otherwise stressful event is funny. For example, I sometimes get the giggles when my teenagers have a full blown fit about something like cold cereal or people chewing with their mouths open.

It's not like life is a piece of cake at my house. Believe me, we have more than our share of drama and distress, but I have to laugh at myself. If I don’t, things will get ugly real fast. Its bad to take yourself too seriously. When I laugh at myself enough, I can actually get people to laugh with me. It is very rewarding. Especially if my husband and kids laugh. I find if I laugh before anyone else has time to yell or cry, often I can completely change the outcome of an entire situation.

There have been times, in my life as a mom, that I have resisted the urge to laugh because I wanted to nurse my anger, my sense of injustice. I regret those times.

So, I double dare you to laugh when you normally would freak out or get grumpy. You’ll feel better and so will everyone else.

Laugh, and the world laughs with you; weep, and you weep alone.

I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out of my nose. ~Woody Allen

Dad always thought laughter was the best medicine, which I guess is why several of us died of tuberculosis. ~Jack Handey, "Deep Thoughts," Saturday Night Live