HUMOR CAN MAKE YOU HEALTHIER

CONSIDER THE VALUE OF LAUGHTER

Probably all of us have experienced how a well-timed joke has broken the tension in a group. We also know that nothing builds community like some shared humor. Norman Cousins wrote a book describing how he had laughed his way to health. Laughter is an untapped health resource that Westminster Shores will explore in September. If stress and negative emotions can suppress the immune system, laughter can help boost our immune system. Laughter not only reduces stress, which can damage the heart, but it can also lead to improved blood flow, which can help ward off high blood pressure. Some studies have indicated that intense laughter can lead to muscle relaxation for up to forty-five minutes. 

YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE FUNNY

You can follow a basic structure to create your own joke.  

First,  pick a premise. Don’t try to pick a funny one. Simply pick an issue or topic that you have strong feelings about, positive or negative. Perhaps your subject is the pandemic, political leaders, the economy, the internet, TV ads, etc.

Second, choose an attitude to shape the premise – such as bad, weird, scary, nasty, amazing, etc. EG, “what is really scary about the internet is . . .”    With the premise and attitude, we have a foundation for  joke.

Now, frame three responses, the first two being fairly reasonable and the third having a twist that makes it funny.

SOME EXAMPLES:

What’s weird about technology is it helps you prove all those conspiracy theories.

• It was created by corporations to steal your security secrets.
• Al Gore invented the Internet so he could connect all those tree huggers.
• It was designed to help children get final revenge proving they know more than we do.

BEGIN AT THE BEGINNING

First, God created the world and said: “It is good.”

Second, God created committees and said: “It is necessary.”

Finally, God created a good bottle of Scotch and said: “This is for those occasions when the first two don’t work.”

HUMOR AND FRIENDS GO TOGETHER

Gather a couple of friends, on Zoom if necessary, and play with this structure. Even if you don’t come up with a great joke, you will have fun in the process and all of you will feel emotionally uplifted.  Unlike gravity that pulls objects down, levity lifts people up.