Repay Laughter with Laughter
“Be a friend to your friend, and repay each gift with a gift, repay laughter with laughter, repay treachery with treachery”
Havamal Stanza 42
At the beginning of all creation on Midgard, Odin himself gave two humanoid hunks of driftwood the breath of life. In these years, life is hard and difficult at times. Stress lurks around every corner and seeks to dig deep in the very depth of our psyche. I believe Odin thought of this, and in that breath of life, He gave us Laughter!
Even the old tales. Though most are serious and often times leave you with more questions than answers. Some are supposed to make you laugh. Brokr and Eitri sewing Loki’s mouth shut. That the Mead of Poetry from Odin’s hind quarters created bad artistry. Thor disguised as a bride. Hel, even a squirrel that roams Yggdrasil just to run his mouth!
Humor can be found in every aspect of life, you just have to open up to it.
Nine times out of ten if you see me, I’m laughing. Laughter has a way of allowing that light into the darkest of souls. As someone who thinks meditation is a very useful tool for centering yourself, sometimes throwing everything in whack and cackling for a while can do the same thing. Laughter has been found to be three times more effective in stress relief than meditation.
I’ve strived most of my life to live a more funny lifestyle and I have a couple steps that have helped me along the way.
Be more funny! Try to find the humor in more things. Try to crack more jokes when you can. Look on the bright side more. Find the imperfections and laugh about them.
Use humor as a stress relief! I often times analyze every situation and find myself reeling in a pit of self doubt. But when I decide to think about that and how I could have brought humor into the situation. I find myself not being so worked up about it anymore. A laugh a day, keeps the depressy away.
Smile More! It takes 62 facial muscles to frown, but only 26 to smile! The medical Mumbo jumbo of smiling will tell you that it releases endorphins, and serotonin. What it doesn’t tell you is that a smile is contagious! The reciprocation of a simple facial expression can make a gloomy day turn into sunshine. It helps you stay more positive overall!
My last bit of advice is…
5. Laugh At Yourself! Learn to not take yourself so seriously! When we laugh at our mishaps, we stop looking at them as problems and start to look at them as funny moments. It makes you humble! It makes hurtful comments not hurt as much! And most of all, it teaches you how to do one of the most difficult things in the world.
Accept yourself!
To live a life of laughter, is to live a life of love. From a single chuckle to a boisterous cackle. Laughter teaches us the greatest lesson of all. That in the saddest moments, and in the darkest of times. Light is just around the corner. I feel that when we laugh the Gods hear it and it makes all the turmoil, and the sacrifice worth it.
Even Odin said to repay laughter with laughter.
So let’s start!
From the heart,
Love,
Grandma
