Laughing At Life
"The only intelligent tactical response to life's horror is to laugh defiantly at it." - Soren Kierkegaard. Life can be hard, and sometimes the bad things keep piling up to the point where there is nothing left to do but choose to end it or laugh. As I have collected quotes that resonated with me, I noticed many humorous quotes made by deep thinkers that have made me laugh out loud. I am sure that what I find funny probably speaks volumes about my inner psychology, but I will go ahead and risk your judgment. After all, what we find funny has a great deal to do with our life experiences. Humor can be a way of dealing with the disillusionment with human nature that seems to come about with experience, sooner for some, later for others. Here are some of my favorites:
"Always do what is right. It will gratify half of mankind and astound the other." - Mark Twain
"I've always been interested in people, but I've never liked them." - W. Somerset Maugham
"Everything that needs to be said has already been said. But, since no one is listening, everything must be said again." - Andre Gide (1869- 1951)
"We are here on earth to do good for others. What the others are here for, I don't know." - W.H. Auden
"I don't hate people, I just feel better when they aren't around." - Charles Bukowski
Humor is entertainment, but the best is also thought-provoking, making you slightly uncomfortable with its truth. It is a way to get a point across without openly accusing anyone. "If you want to tell people the truth, make them laugh, otherwise they'll kill you." - Oscar Wilde. If used by the intended target as a way to self-reflect and see things about themselves that need changing, it can be an effective way to stimulate the growth of a person or a society. Francis Bacon said about mankind, "Imagination was given to compensate him for what he is not; a sense of humor to console him for what he is." If a sense of humor is absent in a person, then life would not be bearable for long because misery comes quickly.
"Humor is the instinct for taking pain playfully." - Max Eastman. Laughter is a coping mechanism for trauma and heartbreak, a way for the brain to handle emotions that it cannot make sense of any other way. "Through humor, you can soften some of the worst blows that life delivers. And once you find laughter, no matter how painful your situation might be, you can survive." - Bill Cosby. Laughter triggers the release of endorphins, and endorphins have pain-relieving and stress-reducing effects on the body. It also helps us build resilience and gives the mind a more optimistic perspective when things go wrong.
There are as many forms of humor as there are people, and so you will have to figure out your style. Most 'dad' jokes make me roll my eyes, but I suppose there are a few funny ones. My boys tell me that sarcasm is a foreign language to me. For sarcasm to be fully appreciated, I am told that you must realize that the person does not mean what they are saying. Unfortunately for me, I often find sarcasm to be a passive-aggressive way of saying something mean. I must learn not to take things literally, I guess. 😄Here are some of the types of humor that I do laugh at-
Self-Depreciation- Humor that points out your flaws in a playful way. "He who laughs at himself never runs out of things to laugh at." - Epictetus.
"If any man thinks ill of you, do not be angry with him, for you are worse than he thinks you to be." - Spurgeon.
Irony- There are several types of irony. Situational irony is a contradiction between what you know and how you act. "She generally gave herself very good advice, though she seldom followed it." - Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Looking back over my posts for the year and finding them incriminating, I believe I can say that I am a poster child for situational irony. Verbal irony is saying the opposite of what is meant. "Been married 20 years, but I still carry my wife's picture in my wallet. Whenever I face difficulty in life, I take out my wallet and stare at her picture. It comforts me knowing that... if I survived this psycho, I can survive anything." - unknown.
Absurdism- Pokes fun at the way humans attempt to assign meaning to the things we think are important, even though life is futile.
"It's so simple to be wise. Just think of something stupid to say and then don't say it." - Sam Leveson
"Sometimes the first step toward forgiveness is realizing the other person was born an idiot." - unknown
"You are never alone. Anxiety will always be there for you." - unknown
"You should sit in nature for 20 minutes a day... unless you're busy. Then you should sit for an hour." - Zen saying
Satire- "Satire is meant to ridicule power. If you are laughing at people who are hurting, it's not satire, it's bullying." - Terry Pratchett. I have always loved satire as a way to poke fun at systems or groups, especially ones that think they have all the answers.
"Without education we are in a horrible danger of taking educated people seriously." - G.K. Chesterton
"Politicians and diapers must be changed often, and for the same reason." - Mark Twain
"The trouble with political jokes is that very often they get elected." - Will Rogers
The best part about laughing is when you get to share that laugh with other people. "I think one of my favorite feelings is laughing with someone and realizing halfway through how much you enjoy them and their existence." - unknown. There is something about laughing with others about ourselves, life, situations, and other people that makes all the bullshit seem smaller, less life-threatening, more manageable. If you are looking for a way to connect with others, learning to be humorous would be a good use of your time. “I love people who make me laugh. I honestly think it’s the thing I like most, to laugh. It cures a multitude of ills. It’s probably the most important thing in a person.” — from How to Be Lovely: The Audrey Hepburn Way of Life. Laughing is very human way of coping with life is needed now more than ever. "The human race has one really effective weapon, and that is laughter." - Mark Twain. I hope that you find many reasons to laugh this week!
Love and Hope,
Big Sky Baby