I believe in amusement… amusement in the form of laughter, giggles, chuckles and chortles. I’m not talking about the kind of amusement where I find myself merely grinning. No, I mean amusement when laughter causes my eyes to water and my abs to become as hard as a rock. Amusement to the point where my cheeks ache, yet I cannot stop smiling. Although I enjoy being entertained by others, the main source of my amusement often comes from my own stupid actions. I have always found myself doing something awkward or clumsy, whether it was not making a turn wide enough and bumping into a wall or running up the stairs and falling uphill, somehow defying gravity. I’d think that by now, my klutzy phase would be over, but honestly, I’m beginning to think I will never grow out of it.
It was the last day of seventh grade and I had just received a leadership award. I was walking over to shake my teachers’ hands when, oops, I face-planted right in front of all the administration, my parents and all of my classmates. Thank God this wasn’t anything new for me. Instead of jumping to my feet and running out of the room in embarrassment, I sat up and started laughing hysterically nonstop for what seemed like three full minutes. I thought I would never live that down, but if it wasn’t for the amusement I got out of it, and the entertainment I brought to others, I probably would have never shown my face in public again.
More recently, in fact just a few months ago, I went to Kansas to participate in a rodeo. During a scavenger hunt, as my team and I ran to find the next clue, I slipped on a weed that had grown in between the crack of the concrete and found myself flat on my stomach with a tear in my long-sleeve blouse and blood dripping from my elbow. I felt myself tearing up, both from the pain and the embarrassment, but once everyone started laughing, I thought about how funny it must have looked to them. I laid there a bit and kept replaying the incident in my head which helped me to turn my tears into laughter. I’ve heard that laughter is the best medicine, and I believe that to be true.
My ability to make a complete and utter fool out of myself happens at least two or three times a day. Unplanned I might add. But at least my close friends and family get quite the laugh out of it; and for free. At least I know they aren’t laughing at me, but they’re laughing with me. At least that’s what I want to believe. I am surprised that despite how clumsy I am, I have so far managed not to break a single bone. But maybe that means I’m not doing it right.
Although some might think I am being annoying and immature, others might look at me as a fun loving person to be around. I’m not going to apologize for not wanting to grow up. Amusement makes life way more entertaining.