Laughter and Smiles

It has taken a long time to write about the words “Laughter and Smiles.  Back in June 20, 2011, I started a blog named “Let’s Talk Words.” I wanted to share the words that have meant so much in my life. There are 30 of them: God, Jesus. Holy Spirit, Surrender, Will, Love, Peace, Joy, Hope, Prayers, Family, Friends, Care, Free, Accept, Change, Courage, New, Alive, Share, Kind, Today, Now, Feel, Help, Focus, Smile, Laughter, Alzheimer’s… Hmm, I am missing one, I will have to go find it and bring it to the next blog. (Smile)

In August I tried to write about Laughter and I could not get it right. I would put it down for a while.  It is time to finish this blog. So, here we go!

Smiles make me smile. When we look at a person’s face we can see if they look sad, ok or happy. We smile at them and most of the time they smile back. We can find words that we use like beam, grin, pleasant, agreeable.  Can we remember when we were shy, holding on to mom’s hand, be hiding around the chair or dad holding me because I did not want people looking at me? I can in my head! I always liked to laugh. 

We had a lot of laughter in our home. We laughed with puppies and cats or both. We would be happy playing games outside or inside with our girlfriends and boyfriends.  We would fly down the street on our bikes. Watch Out!  Winter time, we were sledding down the hills. Watch Out! We laughed a lot. Sure we had bad times. We all do.  But someone would crack a joke and we would laugh, it is ok.

As I grew up, life was not as funny. My laughter was to make a joke about someone else, race, church (not my church), anyone that was not USA, blondes, stutterers. In high school, I would be real quiet and tell a joke to the person next to me and they would laugh out loud and the teacher would ask the person what was so funny, Of course, I sat there and giggled. Over time, I realized that I hurt people with my jokes. Made then cry. I would say, you can’t take a joke.

Why did I do this? I wanted to be seen. When I finally understood God is Unconditional Love, my life changed with God. I still make jokes, but they are focused on me. People will laugh at me and with me. People that do not know me might make jokes about me, when I can’t get my words and stutter. They will laugh when they say to their friends, she is stupid or crazy. When I found out I have Alzheimer’s Disease, they can laugh with me. Not on purpose I can make people laugh at me: I will say a word I know makes no sense. It cracks me up, and Butch, too.

I need laughter in my life. When people hear that I have AD (Alzheimer’s Disease), people will say that’s sad or they will not believe it. I start to smile and share that it is a blessing for me from God.

I believe God gave us the gift of laughter.  We feel good. 

What keeps me going? God does this in many ways. One that is important to me is laughing and smiles. There are times when I am tired, I am in the grocery store, I am going down the row and another person is coming towards me, I lift my face and we might hit the baskets and as we are trying to get loose we start laughing. I am not tired now. Sometimes, I see people who are sad and I smile at them and they smile too. It feels so good.

When do we laugh? First, what word do we want to use: Laugh, Laughing, Laughter, LOL. There are other words: Ha Ha, Hilarious, Snicker, Chuckle, Giggle. Right now I am smiling at the words. I feel good.  We sometime are playing games and it is getting really funny, we may say, I am laughing out Loud or I Laughed until I cried.  Laughter gives us joy and hope.  Can you feel it?

Here are some more words that you may have used when you are down and out and you hear one of these words you want to get up and move: funny, humorous, hysterical, comical, or mirth. There are times we use Laugh in different ways: I laughed off the idea when I knew my words were getting away from me, but then I thought I was just getting older and I laughed it off. Then you might hear someone saying: You were the laughing stock at the wedding. Or maybe: This is not a Laughing matter.

We have been blessed by our Higher Power that helps us to stand up and know that it is been given to choose to cry sad, smile, laugh, anger… What will we choose?

For me now I can get sad, angry, asking why, when I go to my God I can and I will choose laughter, maybe quiet, out loud or smile. I have been noticing I am slowing down with words, going back and forth to find something and coming out of the room with something else. Two days ago, I set down my eyeglasses in the bathroom, forgot to pick them up and went to the kitchen, when I realized I did not have my glasses.  I went 6 times to find them and pick them up. It is hard for me to keep my focus, and I cried.  Then I remembered that I can step up and laugh. Right now it is a smile, as I finish. I did it!

It may take time to do what I want to do and today I choose to laugh and smile. Will you do this with me today?

God’s will, not mine!