In the series on the basket of words we have been learning about many ‘new’ words and discovering the role they play in a recovery process for someone.
We began with the word courage, then willingness, trust, tenderness, power, balance, change, rest, healing, compassion and play.
Now our twelfth word will be humor.
I know it seems to be a very strange word when dealing with ‘recovery’ and intense life experiences or memories.
When someone is in the recovery process as time moves on for them healing takes away so many hard and difficult feelings.
When those ‘intense feelings leave’ new ones are replaced within the person who is healing.
As they feel safe they begin to realize the real person tucked away inside the one who was hiding.
When I was in therapy and I learned to breathe and relax,
something changed deep inside my spirit.
People began to tell me I was becoming more funny.
It was natural but was also very hidden.
Dictionary.com said:
it is the expressing or perceiving the amusing or comical.
One quote I found said: purely intellectual manifestation of cleverness and quickness
of apprehension in discovering analogies between things,
with sharp observations or remarks.
Basically the quality of being funny.
Another quote by Constance Rourke said it this way:
(which is a bit easier to understand)
An emotional man may possess no humor, but a humorous man
usually has deep pockets of emotion, sometimes tucked away or forgotten.
(I don’t know this lady nor do I know the other person I quoted just liked what they had to say on the subject)
For the person in the process of healing humor can help
in many ways and on many levels.
It has been discovered through research that when we laugh we actually change our chemistry on the cellular level.
It also has been discovered that if cancer patients learn to laugh they sometimes can transform or reduce their ‘cancer cells’ allowing them to heal faster and stronger.
Stress is lightened and we are more healthy when we laugh.
In our growing up years we didn’t laugh very often as there was very little to laugh about.
Therapy opened up that door for me and as I walked into the room
‘of humor’ I realized it was freeing.
To look at life in a not so serious way and see it differently is both challenging and good.
Humor is healing to the soul and also ministers to those around us.
On many occasions I have had people say to me,
“Oh I miss your humor. you always make us laugh.”
Even though it still doesn’t feel natural to me,
I think that it is a very wonderful compliment.
So I challenge you today.
Find a funny movie, a book or a delightful walk and discover humor.
You won’t be sorry, I promise.
