Sometimes we aren’t sure which way to jump, which path to take, what is in our future.
One of the many things my dad taught me was to stand back and try to see the humor in any situation. He had a bad accident, falling off a horse when he was three, leaving him with a shortened left arm with an almost useless hand. He learned to use humor to keep kids from bullying him. He would make them laugh so hard they forgot his ‘disability’ and took him into their group. He used jokes and sarcasm to make his views known. An example of this was he would say, “Nice skirt” to me – when he actually thought it was too short and I needed to change my clothes. Whenever he was in a group, you would soon hear laughing. He passed his ability to see humor in most situations on to me. Just before he died, he scrawled on a napkin, “Remember me laughing.” Though it took me awhile, I do. What a strong, smart man he was!
I have used his lessons many times over the years. I can never win an argument, for example, because I can either easily see the other person’s point of view, or I ‘see’ us having a ‘discussion,’ see the humor in the situation – or the fact that what we are ‘discussing’ has little priority in what is important in life, and the tension dissolves.
Many times life throws us curves that challenge us on seeing the humor.
We’re in the middle of one right now, and things have been difficult. Our son is now home with us, helping with the situation. He brings CALM, caring, good sense, a healthy sense of the ridiculous, love, and lots of hugs. He has had us laughing several times already and he’s only been home a day.
I found this on the net this morning, and it made me smirk. A good reminder to keep my head on straight and be extremely glad my two guys are together. Together we will figure out in which direction we should go.
I Need Real Help
creativeartworksblog 
What a treasure. He gave you a very valuable life skill, and a lot of endorphins I bet!
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Thank you for writing, and for your kind words. I was very lucky to have him as a dad. Now I’m lucky to have our son – who makes me laugh so hard my stomach hurts – and my husband, who can also see the humor in many situations. Being able to stand back and see what is happening as if you are an observer, rather than a participant, is truly a life skill that has helped me through MANY situations. I have to admit, sometimes it causes problems when “I” see the humor and others cannot. I do remember him laughing, telling goofy stories, and more. He WAS a treasure and will live in my heart forever.
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Oh how I know. I wrote a blog post about that. I ‘dare’ to make fun of some really difficult things in my life. But I think humor is a very valuable coping skill that increases our chances of surviving many things. I especially love your analogy ‘observer’. I write about that too. It’s nice to know that there are others out there who can laugh. Like toilet paper, laughter is becoming harder and harder to find these days. Here’s to Dad.
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Thank you. I really appreciate your writing. It seems as if we are kindred spirits. May we both find the humor in as many situations as possible. At least we now know there is ONE other person who thinks as we do. :0)
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Indeed! Keep them coming. I need them if no one else does, sis.
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:0) I’ll work on it, sis.
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