Humor, Joy and Laughter: a Serious Look Inside

Inspired by this week’s prompt.

First of all, who am I kidding, I am already laughing at myself. I am never one to be serious about laughter!

The school year is starting for many and being nostalgic, I point out one of the things that I would tell my students:

“There will be times when I tell a joke. At least to me it will be a joke. I will need to do this because sometimes you will be boring. It isn’t your fault but you students sometimes are. Please feel free to laugh if you like, but remember I am trying to amuse myself not you”.

I would see some strange looks from students that had not had me before and some chuckles from some that had because they knew what I was saying was true. I was a mathematics teacher, so my subject matter was serious business. But I knew and know that you have to be on your toes to learn and to be relaxed and waiting for a bad joke might just do the trick for that.

Humor:

My sense of humor is varied, but one of the tendencies is dark humor. Since Diana brought it up, I am lucky to have a pretty good evil laugh. I have introduced this to people at some ‘appropriate’ times. It might be headed into the dark halls of a scary room in an amusement park. It might be the first thing I think of when the power goes out on a dark and stormy night.

I enjoy sarcasm. I have heard the pros and cons of it, but sarcasm when it is not meant to hurt anyone is good intellectual repartee. I don’t usually find humor directed at someone very funny, unless that is humor directed at me by me. I like dark comedy movies and comedy shows at a higher level. Slap-stick comedy at the right moments. I like laughter! There is nothing like laughter in a room to produce more humor. When laughter is around then some of the silliest things I hear can bring tears of laughter to my eyes, my jaws, and tummy hurting from same.

Joy:

Laughter is one of the things that brings me joy, but it is hardly the only thing. A long talk with a good friend with or without drinks.

Waking up to a beautiful morning like this one after many days of gray skies and rain. Looking at natural beauty in pretty much all of its facets.

Wildlife, especially owls. Seeing an owl take fight on soundless wings is just a joyful experience. Seeing rabbits or squirrels run and play.

Acting like a child when children are around to play.

The unexpected. On Friday for instance I mowed my lawn. It was a hot sweaty activity. I have a wild raspberry bush by my fence. It is long past raspberry season. I was tired and sore but when I neared the bush there was one last berry, it was huge, how the furry critters and birds had missed it I have no idea. I reached out, got stuck on thorns like I had written about in a post a month or two ago, and finally tasted it. Sweaty, sore, and bleeding it was the sweetest most wonderful raspberry I have eaten in oh so many years. Quality moments bring me the most joy.

Laughter:

I shouldn’t say this, but what I do to make others laugh is to just be myself. I sometimes do but I try not to take myself too seriously. When I am with good friends I tend to speak with not too much of a filter… ok ok, with No filter at all. But what comes out sometimes makes people laugh, hell it sometimes makes me laugh. But I always say I am laughing WITH me not AT me. I will round this up with the point I made before:

Laughter makes me laugh and laughter makes many things that may not be that funny, hilarious.