ZenView
By Mary Layton
Humor
I love to laugh. When we were children, my brother and I were always laughing even though we didn’t always have a reason to. Sometimes we were reprimanded: Can’t you be a little more serious? To us a lot of the adults were acting weird and we enjoyed making fun of them, imitating the way they talked and walked. We promised each other that we would always stay silly, no matter what. Decades have passed and sadly I’m not so silly anymore. I have become a full-fledged adult. Oh no! Life gets more serious the older we get. It’s easy to forget to laugh. I believe by taking ourselves so seriously all the time we become too self-absorbed. We might be too strict or too aggressive, lacking humility and compassion for ourselves as well as others. Sometimes I think it’s ridiculous how seriously I’m taking myself. I’d like to reclaim my laughter.
That lightness of being, the pleasure and freedom humor brings! I believe it would improve my mental and physical wellbeing. Humor is serious business. Research has shown that humor and laughter is related to health, can release physical and emotional tension, improves immune functioning and increases friendliness. In fact there are Laughing Clubs that meet regularly to laugh in the US, India and in Europe. When we laugh muscles get activated, our heart rate increases and respiration is easier with the increase of oxygen exchange. Humor helps to cope with the difficult aspects of life. A little humorous remark can bring a little love, give a little joy. As Charlie Chaplin once said: “ A day without laughter is a day wasted.” May be that’s why we love to watch the late night talkshows and stand up comedians because they make us see the humor in things. We go off to bed with a smile. Suddenly the world, us included, isn’t so hard to take. This holiday season I wish everybody laughter, humor and joy!
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