“Life is far too important a thing ever to talk seriously about it”…Oscar Wilde
You heard it here. It’s a good time to lighten up and maybe gain a new perspective. We won’t be working short forever or dealing with post pandemia in perpetuity. So how do we do this lighten up thing? The answer is to stretch the ‘finish line’ of day to day activities to create some mental breathing room.
Think of it like walking or jogging. If you walk one mile and experience has taught you that this is the range that depletes you, depict the finish line at two miles in your mind. If you jog five miles and it taxes you, think finishing at 10k, (6.2). See it in your mind’s eye.
If you are a marathon runner and have run 26 miles, you already have depicted the finish in another .2 miles. Congratulations, you have created some new mental space. Celebrate the success of your new disposition and use it to lighten up.
Sheryl Crow said it very in back 2002 “It’s not having what you want. It’s wanting what you’ve got.
I’m gonna soak up the sun. I’m gonna tell everyone to lighten up. I’m gonna tell ’em that, I’ve got no one
to blame. For every time I feel lame I’m lookin’ up.”
OK, now that the mind has been stretched, what do we fill it with? How about something less serious or fun.
Collins English dictionary defines ‘lighten up’ as: Taking things less seriously and making an effort to be more relaxed and happy. Here are some starter phrases, (puns intended.)
A man tells his doctor, “Doc, help me. I’m addicted to Twitter!”
The doctor replies, “Sorry, I don’t follow you…”
Why can’t you explain puns to a kleptomaniac?
They always take things literally.
How do poets say hello?
Hey, haven’t we metaphor?
What did the buffalo say when his son left for college?
Bison
A woman in labor suddenly shouted, “Shouldn’t! Wouldn’t! Couldn’t! Didn’t Can’t!”
“Don’t worry,” said the doc. Those are just contractions.”
Why did the chicken go to the séance?
To get to the other side.
Yesterday I saw a guy spill all his Scrabble letter on the road.
I asked him, “What’s the word on the street?”
What do you call an apology written in dots and dashes?
Re-morse code
What do you call a rooster staring at a pile of lettuce?
A chicken sees a salad.
I waited all night to see where the sun would rise…
And then it dawned on me
Hear about the new restaurant called Karma?
There’s no menu: You get what you deserve.
And…groan
What do you call a fake noodle?
An Impasta
Laughter is good medicine. According to HelpGuide.org, laughter strengthens your immune system, boosts mood, diminishes pain, and protects you from the damaging effects of stress. Nothing works faster or more dependably to bring your mind and body back into balance than a good laugh….lol.
