Saturday, April 13, 2013

L is for Laughter

One of my favorite sounds in all the world is laughter, most especially the spontaneous belly laugh of a small girl child.


Or a big girl child.
That's good too.

We value humor in our family. We like to laugh and we crack our own selves up on a regular basis, which I think is healthy.  Every family has their own sense of humor, things they find funny that would leave someone else scratching their head.  That's okay.  I think your own brand of humor is a big part of what makes a family a family.

The world is such a serious place anymore, and America in particular seems to have lost her ability to laugh.

It.is.so.tiresome.  

I think we can look at life in one of two ways-either the glass is nearly full or it's almost empty, so I choose A.  Bad things happen due to poor choices or for reasons we can't see or know in this life. There's pain and heartache and hurt looking for a place to land because this is planet earth, not heaven.

Laughter is healing. Laughter can ease a tension, lift a sad spirit, or soothe a weary, wounded soul. I feel certain God has a sense of humor...think of baby giraffes, the platypus, belly buttons, and dogs that can count.

While I recognize there is evil in this world, there is also a lot of just plain rudeness. So much whining and complaining and mean-spirited stuff out there and for what purpose?

Much of life is beyond our control...


...how we respond to it is not.

"A cheerful heart is good medicine..."  Proverbs 17:22

30 comments:

  1. Agree laughing is good for almost anything that ails ya. Though I disagree that most of life is beyond our control. I don't think we're along for the ride and I think if people realized they really are in charge of the life, not just a victim of circumstance, they might be more proactive.

    The oh well, throwing one hands up isn't something I subscribe to.

    A-Z

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    1. Oh I'm definitely not a 'throw your hands up' kind of girl : ) I suppose I was thinking more of how we handle life's blows, big and small...the people we encounter who aggravate us, life's little frustrations that are part of daily living like waiting in queues, slow drivers, that sort of thing, and then also things like devastating illness. We may not be able to control getting cancer, but how we face it is another matter. Thanks for visiting today!

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  2. Oh, I love laughter too and would rather laugh than eat when I was hungry. It truly is good medicine and our family enjoys a lot of laughter, especially our daughter and me. Happy Saturday!

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  3. The girls are adorable and the pics of them laughing is priceless.
    Thanks for the follow.
    Blessings for a fabulous weekend.
    Ginger

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  4. I couldn't agree more! NOTHING like a good laugh! My family is famous for it...we can find the humor is almost anything..you have to sometimes. Oh, and that verse is one of my fav's. I quote it to my grands all the time. A happy, cheerful heart makes you feel GOOD. Have a good day!

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  5. I miss having friends to laugh with. That's the hardest thing about where we live.
    I laugh so much when I am with my son. I love that.

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  6. Those were always the best days when I would hear my son and daughter playing together and laughing. Our family has a fun sense of humor and when we are all together we laugh a lot.
    My son is the funniest!!!

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  7. Laughter brightens the mood, relieves tension, encourages positive thinking - and in a world that currently seems to focus on all that is mean and spiteful it is a welcome antidote!

    After a couple of years of unpleasant life-issues, I've learned to make the most of any laughable occasion; being able to laugh at oneself is, of course, an asset - to others as much as myself! ;-)

    Love this post, will be back to look through the other letters in your A-Z!

    SueH I refuse to go quietly!

    Twitter - @Librarymaid

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  8. I would rather have a life of laughter than a life of worldly riches.

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  9. You are so right that laughing makes the rough spots in life so much easier to bear. This reminded me of a friend of my older daughter (a long time ago) that told us she liked to come to our house because she loved to laugh with us. I took that as a big compliment.

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  10. Nothing like children laughing! It makes me smile! Love the last picture, you can almost hear the laughter!
    until next time...nel

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  11. Sweet...yes, laughter is great. And as the old saying goes, it IS contagious. Being cheerful and looking at the good side of things in life is all so worth while. Great post.

    ...and in response to your comment....Joyce, I hope you're having a good weekend also.

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  12. Love laughter....especially from children.....My hubby keeps me laughing! Happy Saturday!

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  13. Laughter is truly the best medicine.

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  14. Oh, laughter is my favorite. I sometimes lose sight of it, but thankfully it comes back around.
    The baby laugh is the best. It's perfection-there is nothing rude or bad or corrupt about it. It's totally innocent and joyful! I just love it. I can picture in my mind some of my favorite pictures of my kids with big, wide-open mouthed laughs. The thought of them makes me smile right now. :)
    One of the things that stood out to me as I read the Dietrich Bonhoeffer bio just recently is that he had, and maintained, a sense of humor. I thought that was noteworthy.
    I often picture Jesus smiling, too. :)
    Your pictures are adorable. I bet it's fun to revisit the past as you write these posts. :)

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  15. How cute are they! I love to see my girls laugh. Following from Blogging A to Z. I also added you to GFC, Networked Blogs, Bloglovin, and Twitter.

    http://www.AMomsPointOfView.com

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  16. Well written. What lovely children. This brought a smile of contentment to me, which is a precious thing.

    Happy A to Z!

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  17. I agree totally, so many people have lost the ability to laugh at themselves, we're all so terribly serious and pc, it makes me sick. I always crack up with my husband and we involve our dogs and cats too...I think we have issues...lol :)

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  18. Laughter, real, honest, uncontrolled laughter is one of the best things in the world. I think that so many problems could be avoided if people learned how to laugh!

    I love these posts, even though I've been a lousy commenter! Hope you're well!

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  19. Totally agree and had a smile on my face reading this. My family is known for cracking jokes left and right and bringing in any newcomers. We are always laughing!

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  20. A wonderful topic and heart warming photo's.

    Yvonne.

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  21. I think laughter is a kiss on the cheek from God! Humor has been SUCH a blessing in our family, it's our love language!

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  22. Great post. Kids put it all in perpsective, don't they? They don't have a half full glass. Theirs spills all over the place. I agree in America we've forgotten to laugh. It's hard to find sometimes, but there's still things to laugh at here.

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  23. I wrote a post about humor a long while back too---I so totally agree with you on the humor issue. I can't imagine where we'd all be without it. At the wedding this weekend, there was a moment during the ceremony where the bride laughed (the groom was having trouble getting the ring on her finger) when she laughed, he chuckled and my thought first thought was, "That laugh is one reason he loves her so much." My second, "Thank God they know humor." Wonderful post! As always! :)

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  24. Love the pics! The girls look like they are have a lot of fun!

    Can't live life without laughter.

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  25. I don't care how old our children are, there's nothing like hearing them laugh out loud.

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  26. Sometimes a good laugh can really make you feel better in life. :)

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  27. How I love to hear a good belly laugh! :)

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