Choosing to Laugh and Play More
The last choice I'll share with you in my quest to choose joy is choosing to laugh and play more. We humans tend to take life so seriously! We need to lighten up, laugh a bit more. Right now my son is a senior in high school and talk about serious...you should hear parents who are going through this college admissions process!
What is he going to do next year? Which school is he going to? What if he doesn't get in to his first choice? What if he doesn't get in at all? When is this due, that due, what if he doesn't graduate--he'll never be able to be productive in the world! All will be lost!
The fact of the matter is, they're going to be okay, these seniors of ours. Why do we insist on creating all this stress and pressure on them at what is probably one of the most exciting, hopeful times of their lives? This is a time of opportunity and dreams...all on mom and dad's dime! If we could just lighten up about it, maybe they could experience the joy of the experience.
Even in our darkest circumstances, there are opportunities for us to play and laugh. The late Gilda Radner, a marvelous comedienne, said: "Cancer is probably the most unfunny thing in the world, but I'm a comedienne, and even cancer wasn't going to stop me from seeing the humor in what I was going through."
And play and laughter is not only good for us personally, but it also connects us to those around us. Another great comedian and musician, the late Victor Borge said: "Laughter is the shortest distance between two people."
But I'd dare to take it one step further.
Choosing joy--through laughter, choosing our thoughts, making choices, noticing, and however else--does more than just impact me or the people I come in contact with on a regular basis. I would argue that it changes the world.
How can we solve war and discord in the world if we do not first eliminate it in our own hearts and minds?
So, for me, in this moment and in as many moments as possible while I am on this planet...I choose joy.
I hope you will, too.
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