I have always considered myself someone with a good sense of humor. Not only do I make jokes, hoping for a reaction, I also can take jokes from others who may poke fun at situations or even me. However, there are times when making a joke can go too far and be hurtful. I call it the Will Ferrell syndrome. I love Will Ferrell, don’t get me wrong, but there are times in some of his movies that his characters go a bit too far and the funny becomes idiotic or too crass.

I have been the butt of many jokes with my friends and family and I typically have a thick skin and can laugh at myself. Heck, if you can’t laugh at yourself, then someone else will laugh at you anyway, so might as well have 1^st crack at it, right? Yet, being the punch line of every joke can cause a person to be self conscientious or dig up memories that are painful. As a young kid and then middle school teen, I experienced a lot of bullying. It caused a lot of hurt for me for a long time, but I kept on trucking and eventually got away from the bullies once I began high school. It was like a clean slate and I was able to be myself again.

This post isn’t about bullying…I will save that for another time. I want to focus on our sense of humor.

This year is probably the perfect year for us to have a good sense of humor and laugh at all the situations we’ve experienced. I am not minimizing the tragedy of the pandemic, but trying to highlight how we have been able to handle the situation without going insane. I saw a quote saying “if we cannot laugh at ourselves, then we will all go insane.” I truly believe if we cannot laugh at ourselves or our situations, then we are lost. 2020 has been a test for us…how resilient we are and how kind we can be to others. Most of all, we can laugh at just about anything now because we have no other choice but to find a light side to this dark time.

I follow a few comedians who really get me laughing out. I love when you laugh so hard that your belly hurts. I find myself having just experienced the same exact situation and can nod my head in agreement and then just laugh! Boy, does it feel good! What is the old adage…laughter is the best medicine? It is certainly an endorphin booster!

Laughing out loud can help you relieve stress, lift your mood, help you forget your troubles and maybe even help you see a different perspective in what would not necessarily be considered a funny situation. For as long as comedians have existed, one thing has remained…making light of a serious situation to help us get through the day. Sure, we can wallow in our self pity and be angry at the world for throwing us another curveball to deal with and crawl back into bed. OR, think about this…we can take the circumstance, look it straight in the eye and LAUGH at it until we don’t even know why we were so angry!

There are serious things that we cannot laugh our way through and there are people out there truly suffering that need our help. I am merely pointing out that without a sense of humor, we can be pretty boring and sad souls. If we weren’t given the gift of laughter, then why do we smile or giggle? We have the ability to feel all kinds of emotions, including humor. And if you are easily offended, try looking at things differently before lashing out to the world. There’s enough negativity out there already. Instead of pointing out what are the downsides of something, let’s showcase the beauty of what brings happiness. Today, start with smiling and laughing. You will feel better that you did!

 #laughter #enjoythelittlemoments #somethingtothinkabout