A Good Sense of Humor Blunts the Sharp Blades of Reality

Harsh is life’s reality. Each trial we endure is a sword of steel that pierces the jagged edges of our imperfect souls. We cannot escape the occasional slashes from life’s rapier that fall upon us when times are hard, but neither can we get through life living with sorrow and angst without a relief valve. Even in the midst of great tragedies, humans have found ways to cope with stress. I cannot equate my own tragedies with those endured by prisoners of concentration camps or anybody else enslaved by abuse or torture. For the most of us, however, we have the spontaneity of humor to lessen our heavy loads: the absurdities coming sometimes from the mouths of children or the foolish; the funny little blunders we see that cause us to laugh out loud; a beautiful day of sunshine changing to one of rain, causing us to chuckle for trusting the weather channel. We can do nothing more than laugh at things like these. To dwell on small accidents or on silly mishaps does nobody any good. Don’t let life’s rapier cut you down with despair. Stress less; laugh more, and especially learn to laugh at yourself. Chortle, chuckle, cackle or guffaw, and by no means, do not always simply smile. Find a stand-up comedy and let yourself fall on the sword of belly laughs, for a good sense of humor blunts the sharp blades of reality.