Laugh All You Want

Has it occurred to anyone else that we are already halfway to Christmas? In fact, six months from now, it will be three days after Christmas. I wrote a post four months ago about how quickly time passes and how soon it will be holiday time again. I was joking then but now, at the halfway point, it is beginning to feel like a reality.

I can almost hear your laughter. But just think about it. Where did June go? It seems to have evaporated. July will do the same. It will be highlighted by the many elaborate Fourth of July celebrations all over the country, and once that’s over, the rest of the month will fly right on by just as June did.

Suddenly, it’ll be August, usually the hottest month, and things will begin to change. Mothers of young children will be buzzing around getting them ready to go back to school. College students will be signing up for fall classes. It will start to feel like summer is coming to a close, whether we want it to or not.

There are other changes in August, too. Can’t quite put my finger on it, but both days and nights take on a different feeling. There are bluer skies, cooler nights interspersed with the warm ones, and times when we feel as though we can actually smell fall coming—at least here in the Southeast.

By now, most of you know that fall is my favorite season and you’re saying, “That’s just wishful thinking on her part.”

You may be right. So go ahead and laugh all you want. But don’t wait too long to start making your Christmas list.

I promise – the way time flies, you’ll be shopping before you know it!

Betrayed By My Emotions

Good-byes are difficult! No matter how much you think it won’t bother you to say good-bye to someone, it’s just part of our emotional makeup to become a little teary-eyed when it’s time to bid farewell to someone who has been a part of your life for several years.

Today we said our final good-byes to the Pastor of our church. He had been with us for five years. In that five years, I had never become particularly attached to him, having loved the one before him so much that, in my mind, nobody could ever replace him. And so... I tolerated the new Pastor. I tried to work with him, but never felt really comfortable. I helped with Vacation Bible School as I had before, attended Bible studies, and took on the job of Communications Coordinator, which involved keeping up the website. Ah, but I still felt no strong connection to this Pastor.

However, in five years, 260 Sundays—we attended most of them—I suppose anything becomes a habit. I listened attentively to this man’s sermons, and without even knowing it, apparently became fonder of him than I realized. Today, when his voice broke a little while telling his congregation good-bye, I felt a tug at my heartstrings. Stop it! I thought. You’re happy to be getting a new Pastor. But there was no denying it; I felt something.

After the traditional luncheon for departing Pastors, we headed for the door, and there he was, right in our path. There was nothing to do but “make nice” and say a personal farewell. My husband and grandson shook his hand. I tried to remain cool but ended up giving him a warm hug instead, and wishing him well.

Why do our emotions betray us?

Author Nicholas Sparks once said: “The reason it hurts so much to separate is because our souls are connected.” 

Could be.

Raccoons In Your Attic?

Have you ever been overcome with a sudden attack of “silliness?” Once in a while, a totally ridiculous image forms in my mind while another person is speaking and I can’t help but giggle before he/she finishes. That happened today while I was chatting with my friend, Carol, on the phone.

Carol was telling me that she’d been having trouble with her new air conditioning system. She’d had a service man twice and was still having problems. The first time he came, he checked the new unit and told her he found nothing wrong. But the thermostat kept climbing during the hottest part of the day despite her setting it for a lower temperature.

The service man came back, checked things again and still found nothing wrong. A quick check of the thermostat convinced him that this could be the problem, so he put a new one in and told her to watch it and let him know if it changed things. It didn’t.

She called him back the next day and he said, “Well, we’ll have to get into your attic. Sometimes, raccoons get in attics and knock the ductwork loose.  That could be your problem.”

“How do you get into your attic?” I asked.
 

“There’s a pull-down ladder in the garage,” Carol answered.

Instantly getting a mental picture that amused me, and struggling to hold back a full-blown laugh, I said, “Do you think raccoons are strong enough to pull that ladder down?”

Silence...

And then, we both burst into unrestrained laughter that lasted for at least two minutes. Carol finally said, “Dyed your hair blonde, did you?”

That's the kind of friendship we have. Flexible and fun!

Puddles Of Light

This afternoon, I was talking to my son who lives about ten miles away, just across the Interstate. We are separated by a small mountain. He vowed the sun was shining through his windows creating puddles of light on the floor for his cat to enjoy. I laughed because I thought he was joking. I hadn’t seen the sun all day! The sky was overcast in my neighborhood and had been for two days. He assured me he was telling the truth. I wondered why the sun was avoiding me and paying a visit to my son instead.

Later, after dinner, I spotted it – shining brighter than usual – its outstretched rays more golden than yellow. How exciting! After hiding out for two days, it had staged a most impressive comeback. I felt like Trixie, a cute little imp who lives in the comic pages. Crawling around on the floor, her life revolves around the appearances and disappearances of “her sunbeam.” She has conversations with it – about it – and sometimes, has to compete with the family dog to take a nap in the warm bright spot it provides. And after it’s been gone for a while, she’s always delighted when it reappears.

  

Some say that time is our most valuable commodity. But if we could find a way to package it and sell it, I’m sure sunshine would be number one in no time.

 I’d vote for it!

Are You An HSP?

Sometimes I wake up feeling so low, I’d need a ladder to climb on the back of a rattlesnake. Someone asks, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” I lie, in an effort to hide my misery.

But today was different. The gloominess was so severe; I had no choice but to inflict myself on a friend. However, I didn’t get a chance to express my feelings. She immediately took control of the conversation and, by the time she finished droning on and on about her problems, I felt like a candidate for the Noble Joy Prize! (?)

I suppose the moral of that story is: To forget your own troubles, listen to someone else’s. Don't try to help. Just listen. 

For some, moods are varied. They wake up one day wondering how they’ll make it through the day, and then the very next morning, the sun is shining brightly and they find themselves happy and thankful for their many blessings.

“Only if they’re bipolar,” you’re saying. But that’s not always the case. Some people are just more sensitive than others. And there’s nothing wrong with that. I recently took a quiz called The Highly Sensitive Person Test. At the end, it said if you answered "yes" to 14 of the 27 questions, you are a highly sensitive person - or HSP. I answered "yes" to 26 of them!

I was a little concerned until I read further: 

If you find you are highly sensitive, you need to begin by knowing the following:

• Your trait is normal. It is found in 15 to 20% of the population--too many to be a disorder, but not enough to be well understood by the majority of those around you. 

• It is innate. In fact, this trait reflects a certain type of survival strategy, being observant before acting. The brains of highly sensitive persons (HSPs) actually work a little differently than others'. 

Writers and artists are almost universally considered to be the most sensitive members of our species. They tend to feel things more deeply than their non-sensitive friends.

Fancy that!

Moments In Life

There are moments in life when you miss someone
so much that you just want to pick them from
your dreams and hug them for real!

When the door of happiness closes, another opens;
but often times we look so long at the
closed door that we don't see the one,
which has been opened for us.

Don't go for looks; they can deceive.
Don't go for wealth; even that fades away.
Go for someone who makes you smile,
because it takes only a smile to
make a dark day seem bright.
Find the one that makes your heart smile.

Dream what you want to dream;
go where you want to go;
be what you want to be,
because you have only one life
and one chance to do all the things
you want to do.

 The happiest of people don't necessarily
have the best of everything;
they just make the most of
everything that comes along their way.

The brightest future will always
be based on a forgotten past;
you can't go forward in life until you
 let go of your past failures and heartaches.

May you have enough happiness to make you sweet,
enough trials to make you strong,
enough sorrow to keep you human and
enough hope to make you happy.

Picture by quotesarcade.com

Laughter Is The Best Medicine

A few days ago, my husband went to our son’s house to begin taking out his old heating system in preparation for installing a new one. He worked for several hours accomplishing what he’d planned to. This was his line of work before he retired. He had his own heating and air conditioning business for thirty years.

However, being retired for a while takes its toll; the inactive pattern we let ourselves fall into often hurts us more than we realize. The next morning when he awakened, he was surprised to find that his back was very sore and it was hard to move. He said, “I think I used muscles I haven’t used for a while.” He took medication and hoped the pain would cease shortly so he could go back and continue working on the job. 

But it was not to be. He could barely walk. At one point, I watched him trying and couldn’t help but giggle. The injured look on his face compelled me apologize quickly. “I’m sorry,” I said. “I know it’s not funny, but you remind me a little of Tim Conway’s character in the old Carol Burnett shows.” I thought it might cheer him up, but he couldn’t even muster a grin.

Many of you will remember the character I’m talking about. He portrayed a very slow-moving old man, shuffling his feet along—barely managing to put one foot in front of the other just an inch or two at a time. It was hilarious! If you're too young to remember it, you missed a classic!

Resting that day and more medication plus a good night’s sleep gave my husband enough relief that he was able to continue the work at our son’s house the next day. I was grateful to see him moving again, but I’m also grateful for the many funny memories he unwittingly evoked.

Laughter is indeed the best medicine, even if – this time – the person who needed it most, didn’t feel much like laughing.