Summary

The web content is a personal and heartfelt poem titled "A Couple of Kookaburras" by Carolyn Hastings, which reflects on joyful moments shared with her late friend Lynda through laughter and tears, and is inspired by a poetry prompt about laughing through tears.

Abstract

"A Couple of Kookaburras" is a poignant poem that captures the essence of friendship and the therapeutic power of shared laughter. Carolyn Hastings reminisces about the times she and her best friend, Lynda, laughed uncontrollably in the face of adversity, likening their behavior to the raucous laughter of the Australian laughing kookaburra. The poem is a response to a writing prompt by Sahil Patel and serves as a tribute to Lynda, who passed away in 2019 but continues to inspire Hastings's poetry. The work emphasizes the importance of humor as a coping mechanism and the enduring bond between friends that transcends death.

Opinions

The author expresses a deep connection with her friend Lynda, describing their laughter as a form of "happy tears therapy" that healed their "battered-bruised souls."
The poem suggests that their humor, often sarcastic and slapstick, was a way to cope with and rise above the "wickedness" of those who had wronged them.
The author acknowledges that Lynda brought out her humorous side and that their shared laughter was a testament to their resilience and the joy they found in each other's company.
The piece conveys gratitude towards Sahil Patel for the poetry prompt and Denise Larkin for hosting the poem in her publication, "The Lark."
The author believes that Lynda's spirit lives on through her poetry and the memories they shared, particularly their laughter, which continues to provide comfort and inspiration.

Poetry | Happy Tears

A Couple of Kookaburras

Laughing our heads off through our tears

“Two Kookaburras on Branch+” by Sheba_Also 48,000 photos incl private is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

How I loved those days just the two of us me and Lynda, eye-to-eye; a couple of kookaburras, tears streaming down our faces, laughing our heads off at each other across a café table

Oh, how we laughed, he-he, ha-ha, he-ha, two silly schoolgirls ‘cept we were old enough to know much better We didn’t care, not one teensy iota, in fact, it made us laugh a decibel louder He-he, Ha-ha, He-ha

The looks we got made us laugh some more ‘I want what they’re having!’ ‘Is this Harry Met Sally?’ he-he, ha-ha, he-ha, ‘Leave them alone’ ‘We don’t want to know’ ‘If we’re lucky, they’ll snuff it!’

Except we didn’t

We’d be there for hours happy tears therapy Oh, how we needed to laugh, he-ha Our battered-bruised souls safe-harbored in glee and each other

The fuel of our laughter was years of adversity, the wickedness of those who lied, faking humanity If we didn’t laugh at them we knew one thing for sure; the misery they’d inflicted would have us laugh no more.

“You’re too funny for words,” she’d laugh uproariously loud He-he, Ha-ha, He-ha, The tears would flow and then she’d say, “God, that feels so good.”

The weirdest thing ‘bout it, I never knew I was funny Lynda, bless her heart, unlocked the fun inside of me She was ever-so clever, perceptive to a T, together we had the ingredients for the laughing recipe

Our humor of choice he-he, ha-ha, he-ha, I’m not ashamed to admit it, was rich in sarcasm layered on thick and pitched slap-stick at others.

And, oh, how they deserved it!

When Sahil Patel prompted us to write a poem about a day when you laughed through tears, I knew this would be one for Lynda.

Lynda, for those of you who don’t know, is my BFF, my soul sister, and my heavenly muse. She died in January 2019 but that was just a complication. For me, she remains ever-present, a constant bond that never fails to deliver comfort, wisdom, and inspiration at times when I need it most.

While Sahil and others prompt me with their topics, Lynda is often the one to prompt the words and the humor. She lives on through my poetry.

I’ve likened our behavior to that of the laughing kookaburra, an Australian native bird with a characteristic, raucous laugh. You’ll know what I mean when you see Crikey the Kookaburra in action in this YouTube clip.

This is my response to Day 24 of Sahil Patel’s poetry challenge. You’ll find details of the prompt here -

Tears in a Smile

Poetry prompt day 24

medium.com

Thank you, Sahil for another excellent prompt. Thank you ever so much to Denise Larkin for hosting this piece in her publication, The Lark. 🙏 💕

Thank you, as always, for reading. 🙏 💕

Write for The Lark

Submission guidelines for a short story and poetry publication

medium.com