Laughter is an amazing medicine. My kids make me laugh more than anyone or thing, with the exception perhaps of a “Some Mothers Do ‘Av ‘Em” or “Mr Bean” episode. Yes, I have one of those senses of humour where even the most obvious and anticipated event can make me laugh over and over again.
Laughter is so infectious and freeing I am beginning to understand why “wairako” a laughing ritual was developed some 800 years ago in the district of Hofu, Japan. Historians think the ritual was initiated by farmers as their way of forgetting about their hardships for a while. Numerous cultures have incorporated this rather simple therapy, so why aren’t we laughing more often?
I wonder if we have become so concerned about what others think about us that we have lost our impulsive nature to laugh. I know for one I laugh more with my family. Is it because I am more comfortable with who I am with them? I feel more self conscious in public, and tend to cover my mouth when I laugh because I am worried about how I look or perhaps sound.
The next time you see children play, listen to how much they laugh. It is amazingly infectious. Watch the ripple of laughter light up one child after another. Observe how they return to the source of amusement for another giggle over and over again. I love the way it lights up their faces, and makes their eyes glisten. Be careful though before you know it your face will light up too!
What an antidote for the busy, image conscious world we live in. And the best news is laughter is free and painless(depending of course on how much we laugh)… so go on free yourself and those around you – lighten up!
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