Laughter Opens The Heart
I have to confess I haven’t found anything very funny in these passing days. I found myself missing the comedies my parents used to watch on TV…from Jack Benny to I love Lucy. A few years ago I was presenting at an all day program for women entrepreneurs and the presenter ahead of me introduced us all to Laughter Yoga. After a few warm up exercises I found myself laughing hysterically at absolutely nothing…and feeling wonderful as a result. It came back to me this morning as I was considering what exercise to share on opening the heart.
Laughter it turns out, is like so many things I have shared…its actually an innate ability that does NOT require an object to bring it on…if you watch young children they are always giggling at nothing…just for the sheer joy of it- and if you asked them what pray tell is so funny….you will get this adorable “I don’t know”.
The heart is the center of our joy, our love, and our peace. These are things we can certainly practice but it’s a little like practicing breathing which fortunately for us – we don’t have to remember to do. We want to celebrate the joy of life – the simple things that make us smile. For me it is currently my 10 month old puppy, Rowan, who I find is very funny. She turns somersaults if she runs too fast. No matter what I might be feeling in the moment, I can’t help myself – I find a huge grin has covered my face.
If we always need an object to find our joy however, we will be giving in to our limitations and beliefs about our limitations in a big way. Instead, we can realize that laughter opens our heart wide and eases us to our natural, state –
Having a catalyst to this portal is very helpful…I found it again on line and signed up to be a certified laughter yoga leader….give it a try and let me know if I am on the right track!
Laughing with you,
