January 2014
Welcome --
"Humor is mankind's
greatest blessing."
(Mark Twain)
A "sense of humor" -- how is this sense of yours faring these days?
As this new year is unfolding, I challenge all of us to reclaim this
innate gift -- this ability to laugh at ourselves and with others.
Let's begin simply, and set dark gallows humor aside for now. Humor goes a step beyond the notion of "glass half full". It takes the positive aspect of a situation and spins it towards the absurd,
silly, or ironic. You don't have to be a good "joke teller". In fact, sometimes healing humor is for our ears only.
Low brow or high brow, it creates a physical release, from a groan to side splitting guffaws. And that release involves a shift in breathing, which resets all
aspects of your Bodymind.
Consider how You respond to humor. A snort is a quick voiced exhale, as is a groan. A chuckle works the dia-
phragm a bit more. A full tilt fit of laughter
produces tears, and while those tears are different from the ones we shed during deep stress or sorrow, they are just as cleansing.
Humor, this special sense, can relieve tension, lighten our emotional loads, and allow us to shift perspective so that a moment isn't nearly as upsetting as we might have
thought. Plus -- it also feels good!
So -- the next time you find Your Self pulled up short by life, put this practice into play:
Stop
Breathe
Ask Your Self: "What's so funny?"
Then -- laugh about it
Dare to nurture this ability to find the humor in a situation. It softens the rough edges around a challenge -- and -- your Bodymind and those around you will appreciate it.
"Humor does not diminish the pain --
it makes the space around it
get bigger."
(Allen Klein)
