Let's Laugh About It!

Photo by Yaroslav Shuraev (Pexels.com)

“Find out where joy resides and give it a voice far beyond singing. For to miss the joy is to miss all.”    Robert Louis Stevenson

Let’s be honest, life can get far too serious sometimes. We all need to take a break from the day to day tasks and try to lighten up if possible. Often I find the need to make a conscious effort to try to see the lighter side of things or find a humorous angle on a situation. 

It is often the very way to break the tension in a stressful scenario and cope with life’s challenges.  I have certain friends that I gravitate towards when I need to feel supported and have a good laugh or a chance to reframe a situation that at the time is getting me down.  My friend Laurel is a genius in this area. True to form whenever I chat with her, she has a unique way of lifting my spirits. She helps me feel better by just spending time with her through her humorous, yet very compassionate manner. Laurel and I worked together on many school musicals she wrote that kept the audience in stiches with her witty one-liners and funny take on things. I will never look at talking trees the same as these characters provided us with lots of funny dialogue and giggles. Special times and memories I will always cherish. I am very blessed to have her and people like her in my life.

I also enjoy watching funny movies and  TV shows or reading witty Facebook posts to share some good laughs with the family. The minions from the Despicable Me movies are so funny. I have watched the movies over and over and still laugh out loud at their crazy antics.
​("It was your cousin's idea."  "WHAAAT???" )

Photo by Jiayuan Lian on Unsplash

A TV show favourite of mine is The Middle. It is a hilarious show about the disorganized, dysfunctional Heck family who can’t seem to get their act together in any aspect of their lives no matter how hard they try. If you have not watched this show, I highly recommend it! Although their family issues are somewhat exaggerated, their trials and tribulations are funny because for the most part we have all been there! We also know in spite of their shortcomings they love each other deeply and that they will work it out in their own quirky way in the end!

On Facebook I read a post this week that said “I smile because you are my sister. I laugh because there is nothing you can do about it!” I’m sure my sister Judy would enjoy this quote! These various outlets provide a light hearted distraction for me which is very helpful some days!

When my son Tyler was younger he had a famous saying that was simply “Let’s laugh about it!” The cool thing about it though, was he was only three years old when he coined this phrase. He had a innate ability to notice when there was tension in the house or a sad atmosphere and he would say in his sweet, little voice “Mom, Dad, let’s laugh about it!” It was his unique way even at a very young age to basically say let’s lighten up a bit and see this situation differently. Wise words from such a young boy. After he would say that, he would throw his head back and break out in spontaneous giggles which in itself was enough to break the tension. How could you not smile at that?!

​Babies are very funny little characters too. They can find the same scenario funny over and over again. I remember playing peek a boo again and again with Shannon when she was a baby.  Every time she would wait in eager anticipation, shudder from the “surprise,“ and giggle so hard like she was not expecting this every time I uttered the magic words! Pretty easy to entertain! We could have carried on this show all night!​

Photo From Alyshia Bilokraly

In Science class one year we were discussing our unit on solids, liquids and gases and yes you can probably imagine where I am going with this! As we were discussing gasses one student much to his horror accidentally contributed to our discussion in let’s just say a most embarrassing way. All the students kind of held their breath and looked at me for direction not knowing what to do next. I quickly said “Thank you for that true life example of what we are talking about today! By the way don’t worry about it! It happens to all of us!” Next we all broke out into hilarious laughter including the once mortified little boy as I could tell he could now relax about this unfortunate occurrence.  I also remember discussing the same topic with another little boy.  When asked to name one liquid you should never drink, after some very thoughtful consideration he said, “hot lava.” The boy beside him and I just lost it as the answer was so unexpected. The boy who said it was fine with our giggles, yet extremely puzzled as he proceeded to tell us why it was an unacceptable beverage in so many various ways! Too funny and another example of why I love my job. Working with kids all day is never a dull moment and a good sense of humour is essential that’s for sure!

Some situations are not funny at all and I am certainly not suggesting that we make light of heartache and sorry. That is a whole other story that I addressed in my last blog. What I am speaking of are the little things that can happen throughout our day that can accumulate into stressful scenarios if we let them.

Sometimes we need to just stop, take a deep breath and refocus. What may seem a bad day, could be turned around if we are able to laugh a bit more! We need to change our tone and try to find our "giggly voices."   

We are all in this together and a great shared laugh is a wonderful way to bond with those around us if we are open to it.

So whenever possible look for an opportunity to bring humour and laughter into your life whether it is through people, books, funny stories, music or positive activities. This is a needed and necessary part of your life and you will be so very glad you did! Let’s face it, if a three year old can “get it,” what’s our excuse?

Proverbs 17: 22 ~ A merry heart doeth good like a medicine!

Little Lesson Learned: Take time to laugh at life and situations whenever possible. A good belly laugh can work wonders for an all too serious and stressful situation!

Until next time,
Dana

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​© 2014 littlelessonslearnedbydana 
​(Dana Romualdi) 
Dana Romualdi, the copyright holder reserves all rights to the content on the blog and website Little Lessons Learned by Dana, including the right to reproduce, distribute, and display the content. No content or photographs may be reproduced or modified. Blogs may be shared on social media platforms in their entirety only with full credit given to the owner. Any photographs used by other photographers are used with permission and are also protected. All Rights Reserved.  ​

Author

​Dana Romualdi is a Canadian elementary teacher, social worker, blogger, author, motivational speaker and recording artist. She has a passion for helping others and spreading much-needed encouragement. She lives in Canada with her husband and two grown children. When she is not working in the classroom or blogging, she enjoys drinking coffee, watching Netflix and reading great books.

Feel free to reach out to Dana
​at: [email protected]