LAUGH

I'm talking about side splitting, cheek hurting, can't stand up straight, all out guffawing!

On a few occasions lately, I have found myself laughing heartily.  After the last one, for some reason, this thought popped into my head - that was such fun, I feel 12 again! – well, maybe 18 but certainly younger than I'm admitting to these days. As the most recent laugh-fest was winding down, I found myself looking down, noticed the backs of my age spotted hands and was instantly struck by the paradox of it.  A complete disconnect. In that moment I was young but my hands were spoilsports!

So I decided to do some research - that is to say, I googled it. After reading a few articles, some pretty scholarly, I decided this fellow summed it up well enough for me:

"No one really knows what laughter is, we know what causes it, but not much more."

I wouldn’t want to get too serious about laughter – that would be oxymoronic, wouldn’t it? By the way, look at the spelling of the word – isn’t that weird enough to cause you to laugh?! 

My personal laughter experience (of which I have a considerable amount) has shown that laughter is most likely to occur in the company of at least one other person, and that’s going so far as to extend the concept to one-sided media such as TV, radio, and even YouTube. I hypothesize that being alone on a desert island would not lead to much hilarity.

Children laugh easily. Don’t you just love to hear a baby laugh?! It’s natural to laugh and I think we retain those memories of simple joy and happiness inside us but the occasions when we can still let loose and laugh uproariously seem special. Usually I scale it down and grin, smile or chuckle if something amuses me these days.  We often are told about the physical and mental health benefits.  Laughter is the best medicine they say. Any kind of laughter is good for a person but paroxysms of laughter – wild sudden outbursts – are a treasure.   And I'm just wondering - Do you think there's any chance that additional all out side-splitting laughter episodes would undo the age spots on my hands?

I enjoy looking up quotes - have chosen this one as my favourite on the subject:

“With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come.”
― William Shakespeare

The following probably won’t result in paroxysms of laughter but enjoy anyways ---

giggle, grin, smile, guffaw, shriek, snicker, cackle, chortle, titter, tee-hee, howl, peal

--- whatever works for you. (I smile just reading those words! Is it just me?) Come to think of it, it must be an important concept to have so many shades of expression!

“I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out of my nose.”

--Woody Allen

(Now there’s a childhood memory!!)

“Laughter is the shortest distance between two people.”

--Victor Borge

“A day without laughter is a day wasted.”

--Charlie Chaplin

“Laughter is an instant vacation.”

--Milton Berle

“A cheerful heart is good medicine.”

--Proverbs 17