Humor Has It

This isn’t a professional advice piece about how to be happy in life. These are my thoughts about how I see humor and what some of its roles in my life are.

I’m also expressing them with the help of some words of wisdom by people known for their wit and talent for comedy. And I’m hoping that one or two things I’ve written in here will send some humor your way.

“Humor is always based on a modicum of truth. Have you ever heard a joke about a father-in-law?”

I think Dick Clark, who’s well-known for hosting varieties and blooper features, was probably being cruel to mothers-in-law when he said this, but there was truth to it. I think the really good jokes are funny, because they are based on facts. Humor is always a great way for making us realize things that have always been right in front of our face, but we’ve been too caught up in something else to notice it. How often do we think, “Oh yeah, that’s right!” after a punchline?

“I used to sell furniture for a living. The trouble was, it was my own.”

This remark from Les Dawson, an English comedian popular for his deadpan style, reminds me of how humor can relieve us of our heartaches or a not-so-pleasant past. It may take us some time to laugh them off, but, at least, we don’t dwell anymore on what’s done.With this attitude, we have a better chance of moving on with our lives.

“I couldn’t wait for success, so I went ahead without it.”

Funny that American comedian Jonathan Winters said this. After all, you can’t consider him unsuccessful. He’s said to have influenced famous personalities of comedy like Robin Williams and Bill Cosby. For me, what he said is a light-hearted but very real reminder about taking whatever life brings you, especially when you haven’t been getting what you’ve been wishing for. Sometimes, you don’t get the best things in life, but what matters more is that you make the best out of it.

“With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come.”

Gratiano, the character who owns this line in Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, was somehow a tactless man. But this statement of his, for me, represents one of the things that I want in life – to grow old gracefully. As the years pass by, I wish that the lines that will begin to show on my face will be reminders that I chose to laugh and smile instead of frowning and sulking.

They say that laughter is the best medicine. I’d say it’s more than just a remedy for aches and stress. It’s a preventive measure that’s all-natural and free for everyone. So by all means, take a dose of humor everyday. It has everything you need to keep you going through good and bad times.