14. If it’s not so funny….

Laughter is contagious. It is a gift. Not everyone can laugh for real; that is a privilege. When we laugh, we can make others laugh too, just as when we cry, others cry. It is an emotion which releases tension, causes happy feelings and eases fears. It gives a feeling of relief.

It seems to be a medical fact that laughter actually helps a patient get better. Crying cleanses the soul. Salty tears release tension and give us a cleansing feeling.

We hear the statement, “I laughed so hard I cried.” Sometimes the emotions are so close together that we can’t tell which we are caught up in. We hear, “It was so funny, I cried,” or “It was so tragic that I laughed.” We become confused about which to do and when to do it.

Laughter is an emotion we have difficulty containing. We just can’t help ourselves. We can think of things that happened years ago and those things are still funny because our memory banks stored that emotion and registered it as “funny.” If the incident has been forgotten, it is difficult to feel any emotion.

Some people laugh at things at the expense of the feelings of others. Some people are ticklish and others aren’t. It all depends upon the individual.

We have power over laughter and many times misuse it. That power can be compared with the power of the tongue, which is hard to control and can be either good or bad. The tongue can praise or it can destroy. It is the most powerful organ of the body. It can save lives or it can kill.

Once a statement of comment has been made, it can never be recalled. It has already been said; it has had its effect on the situation and the people involved. So it is with laughter. Once we laugh at something, it’s over. The effect has been made.

We often misuse laughter. We use it for our own selfish reasons. We use it to control others or put them down. We use it to make ourselves look important or to cover up our weaknesses. We use it to mock others or to get attention. We use it at others’ expense or misfortune.

Laughter was not intended for those purposes at all. It was intended to be used to bring pleasure though humor, to release pressures. It was intended to be used to relax, to forget and forgive, to cheer the sorrowful and to be medicine for the lonely.

Laughter is a serious emotion, and we should choose carefully how we will use it. We control it, since we decide what is funny. We should not allow peer pressure to influence us to decide what is funny for us. We should be able to risk being called a “square” or a sourpuss.

We all want to feel like we belong, a part of the group, not different. Consequently, we will laugh at something we know is not funny just so we belong. We will even laugh at unfunny jokes about ourselves in order to be accepted. We’re searching for love in all the wrong places, even in laughter.

After the laughter has subsided, we are still alone and hating ourselves all the more for being weak. We may have laughed at ourselves all the more for being weak. We may have laughed at unfunny statements about ourselves or our family, our traditions or our values. Perhaps we laughed at our life, someone we love, – even our Christ. When will we grow up and tell someone that something is not funny?

Our entire nation is known to laugh at tragic situations, saying it will help to ease the pain. The pain still remains after the laugher has ceased; it takes more than laughter to stop it.

We laugh at anything just because we do not know how else to handle a situation. We must stop using this emotion as our escape from reality, as some of us use drugs. Just as with drug use, after we stop laughing, we are lower than we were before.

When we laugh together, it’s great! We do and say funny things. We make funny mistakes and sing funny songs. “The joke is on me.” But my features are not funny; my size is not funny. My color is not funny. My accent is not funny. My misfortunes are not funny.

I will no longer laugh at an unfunny situation just to feel a part of the crowd. I will not laugh at other people’s misfortunes to feel superior to them. It was not funny when Jesus was crucified, yet the soldiers laughed at him and mocked Him. Jesus said that what we do to the least of our brothers, we also do to Him.

God created each person in His own image, not as a “clown” to be scoffed. I can be funny-acting, say and do funny things. We should all enjoy that emotion of laughter when such things occur. I am not a prude just because I refuse to stoop to one’s level of disgust about what they think is funny. I have more class than that.

I will always remember that I am somebody, not something to be laughed at. No one will control me with their “mojo” laughter. In doing this, I believe I can set new trends in our family. The more we laugh at each other instead of with each other, the deeper the hurt.

Laughter is contagious, and so is love. Use them both wisely. Learn to laugh and relax. Be real to yourself. Stop being phony just to please others. Grow; get in touch with what is funny in and about yourself and share it with others. Enjoy the laughter, – together.