Laughter is a wonderful gift and we tend to forget about it in seasons of change and uncertainty. When death changes our scenery and illness steals joy we can even experience a sense of guilt and feel like we are disrespectful if we allow ourselves to laugh. I remember when my dad was lying in the hospital the last few days before he died at the age of 86. He knew he was near the end of his life and he was ready to see heaven. He was in pain and not well. Everything the day I remember seemed to aggravate him. We had pulled the shades and kept our voices to a whisper so as not upset him. At one point after waking from a deep sleep he opened his eyes and straining to look at the clock on the wall at the foot of his bed he said with a grin, “Well, I guess I’m still here!” The tensness in the room disappeared and he made us all laugh, not at him but with him! No matter what we are going through, there needs to be a counterbalance of laugher.

Look at these statistics I recently heard:

• An average child laughs 800 times a day vs adults 8 times a day.
• Five minutes of laughter acts as a pain reliever.
• Laughing 100 times is equivalent to doing ten minutes of aerobic excercise.
• Twenty seconds of laughter is equivalent to a three minute work out at the gym.

What makes you laugh? Here are some of my laughing triggers: Getting out (not in) of my Kayak! My 11 grandchildren! My sister-in-law Renae, she always makes me laugh!! People watching on the beach or in an airport is always fun! A funny movie. A great joke. And most of all, me, myself, and I. Don’t take yourself too seriously because life is short. #enjoy2019