Humor – The Remedy To Everything
Perhaps you’ve had a bad day. Perhaps you’ve been laid off at work. Maybe you’re dealing with loss, or coping with stress. No matter what the difficulty, or the problem, humor is the remedy. Humor, fun, is what pulls us through each excruciatingly long and arduous day. There is no situation humor can’t ease, and in any case, it can never hurt. Life is too serious. There are too many problems and issues going on in the world and more personally, in our own lives. A good laugh clears the mind, eases the body, relaxes tenseness, and gives us enough relief to think seriously. I believe in the strong, good-natured will of humor, and in the necessity of it in life.
Whenever school has been a drag, or I’m stuck writing a long and tedious essay about my innermost thoughts, thinking back to when my cat fell off the fence, or hearing a good joke or light-hearted comment and letting out a quiet chuckle, is what returns me to my happy place. I remember when my mother passed away, and had to move from the home I’d known all my life, a friend’s totally unrelated pun and cheery face was what lifted the moment and weight of the world.
Many people look down upon others for joking about a serious situation, but I wag my finger and “Tut, tut,” to those who refuse to take the time to sit down at look at the irony of the issue. There are so many places around the world where a little magic humor dust could alleviate a frown or unclench a fist. I believe that a course in stand-up comedy should be a requirement for many jobs. Picture a judge in a courthouse, holding her hammer in the air, everyone tense with suspense. Imagine a doctor in a death-filled hospital, about to go into surgery, or tell Fred he has cancer. Picture the President, or the general, about to go into war. Under all of these circumstances, a little chuckle or joke could ease the whole problem. You want to know how to be a better teacher? Take a course in comedy. People think more clearly, and pay better attention after that magic humor-induced chemical is let off in the brain. No situation is too serious for anything but seriousness.
We are surrounded by the most depressing thoughts all our lives. Global warming, war, taxes, deaths, murders, disasters, starvation, and the thought that we are more than likely going to spend an eternity rotting in hell for our sins, are the kind of thoughts that are constantly threatening to burst our bubble of satisfaction and solitude. When nobody can slow down and notice the irony, or relax a bit and let humor have its fun, then that is when everything just snaps. People as a whole need it as much as they need oxygen. Just take a look at Iraq. Everyone gets so caught up in what they believe that nobody can stop and laugh, and that’s the end. Then you’re screwed.
Too many people take offense at jokes and lightheartedness. They think that it’s uncalled for, or directed at them, or against their beliefs or religion, and sometimes that is true, but people need to smile and learn to take a joke. The only one not having fun is them. They need to stop taking everything so seriously and ruining the moment for the rest.
So there you have it. There’s the secret to success and happiness. Don’t suppress a giggle because you think it’s goofy, outrageous, or not the right time. So go ahead, let it out, give a guffaw, slap your thigh, and roar out to the world in laughter. Soon you’ll find the rest of the world having a hoot too, and everyone’s better off. It’s too hard to stay angry or sad when in the undeniably pleasant presence of humor. Humor is what keeps the world turning, and in one piece. Now, in typical and literary fashion, I will end the essay with the following:
This I Believe.