There just something contagious about a laugh.
Not a little titter, or a giggle, unless the originator of said giggle is a baby, but that’s another story entirely.
I’m talking about a gut busting, laugh till your eyes water, I-might-die-now-but-at-least-I’ll-die-laughing kinda laugh.
I had dinner with my two closest friends last night at my apartment, and we did what you always do with really good friends: we made fun of each other, talked about everything we could possibly think of, came way too close to an “I love you man” moment, and laughed our heads off.
There are the guys I turn to for advice, to see what a rational person would do, and so forth. (Granted, they are MY friends, so how rational can they truly be?)
But, I digress. A laugh, when shared among friends at full volume, can be one of the most infectious things on the planet. All it will take to get it going again is the slightest mention of what started the chortle-fest to begin with!
And that has to be good for us. It just has to.
Laughter of course means we are taking in large quantities of air and that’s never bad. I’m not about to go into a discourse about the health benefits of laughing, this isn’t that kind of column. But I am going to say that if you have no idea what kind of laughter I am talking about, you gotta get some FAST!
May I suggest you listen to a comedy album? There are numerous ones to choose from. My personal favorites, although they are certainly an acquired taste for some, are Ron White and Louis CK. For the less adventurous there is Bill Engvall, Jon Mulaney, or even the classics like Steve Martin or The Smothers Brothers and so forth.
My point is laughter makes you smile, makes you see things in a new light, and obviously, makes you happy.
Oh, and, have a sense of humor about yourself!
If you have the kind of friends I do, then you REALLY need one, because you’re getting teased regardless of whether you do or not!
And that’s ok, because if it leads to a time of laughter, even at your own expense, then what really can be the harm of it?
I was going to close with something like “have a self deprecating sense of humor, the Beatles did, and if it’s good enough for them…” But then again, the Beatles were ok with putting Yoko Ono in front of a microphone.
And nobody needs that. Ever.
Ben Cox is the host of “Ben Cox in the Morning” weekday mornings from 6 to 9 on KQBZ, 96.9 FM in Brownwood Texas. He is the in-stadium voice of the Howard Payne Yellow Jackets football team and is also a mobile DJ for weddings, parties and the like. He can be contacted via this website.
The thoughts and comments reflected in this column are those of the writer alone, and do not necessarily reflect those of Wendlee Broadcasting, or its affiliates.
