DE-LIGHTENING UP Game (AKA "The Toon Up"). What are you dead serious about? What can't you find any humor in? Your job? Your son's marriage? A friend's physical pain? The lack of peace in the world? Today you can elect to be a Norman Cousins or Patch Adams—an ambassador of delight and self-styled alchemist of positive changes. Begin by proclaiming today, "Humor Day." Create laughter in your life and spread it around.
Read the funny papers, use the library or bookstore to find jokes or cartoons, or check out comedy videos—the more outrageous the better. Loosen up. Stand in front of a mirror and make ridiculous faces at yourself; then, find a kid and play "Mirror," taking turns making and mirroring funny faces. Feel how good it feels to stretch your face and smile muscles. Try out a dumb riddle or "knock-knock" joke on a grumpy cashier, even if you get a groan in return (or less).
Practice until all the animosity leaves you and you really start to feel better, even good. Now take a look at that situation to which you brought only anger, heartache, or "poor me." Breathe into the Bigger Picture and take a snapshot. Got it? Can you see a ray of light there where there seemed to be none before? Feel how compassion, even creativity, can flow? Find some kind of gift in the situation. Yes. You are now "deLightening up." Continue to practice every day until perfected. Catch a heartfelt humor condition and infect everybody you can: at home, at work, at the supermarket—in the mirror.
Treat yourself to a "toon up" on a regular basis. We'll all be so glad you did.
(1063 words)
Marcia Singer, MSW is a Love Arts educator, shamanic healing artist, and hands-on Hypnotherapist (ABH#1743). Reach her at lovearts@att.net about private sessions, classes, trainings. “Humor” is excerpted from her book manuscript The Tao of Play is being represented to the industry by Hurley Media/Leigh Publishing..
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