M E R I D I A N     M A G A Z I N E

A Giggle a Day
By Vickey Pahnke-Taylor

Isn't it great to laugh? It is a blessing to feel a joyful giggle sneak out of our mouths, or a full blown, explosive laugh at an appropriate time. Spending time with people who have a sense of humor is always enjoyable. Snickering together with friends and family creates good memories. Our care must be to simply ensure that the snickers and giggles are positive, good ones. Ones that do not tear down or degrade. Ones that lift and make our day!

There is an old saying that goes, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.” It sounds like a good trade-off, doesn't it?

We might add this little adage as a means of making our days a little better, “A giggle a day keeps the doldrums away.”

“Doldrums” is a word meaning sadness, with a range from "melancholy" (just a bit of sad) to "despair" (a lot of sad — and with little hope).  Regardless, it translates into thievery: stealing from us the blessing of a sunny, happy day filled with faith and joy. It is amazing to me how we can fill the holes of sadness with a bit of good, old-fashioned giggling.

Just for fun, try this experiment today:

Come up with some lame joke — one that may not even be very funny. Sharing it will get varying reactions from the people with whom you communicate it, but it will become more funny to you as you continue to share (some may say, “annoy”) this joke.

I remember an older gentleman sharing a “joke” with me one time, as I was standing in line at the grocery store.  I can remember nothing of the joke. I do remember that it was not particularly funny. But he was a darling little old man, with a sunny disposition, and the desire to add a little of it to those around him. The wait in line seemed less lengthy, and the snap in my step was a bit snappier as I left the store, shaking my head and smiling as I pictured the whole scene in my mind. I have never seen him again, but I doubt I will forget the simple lesson he taught about sharing a bit of happiness.

Years ago, for some strange and inane reason, I determined to create a file of original cow jokes.  Don't ask me why; there is no reason I've ever been able to come up with. But I have had a blast sharing these jokes with my children. The less funny the joke to them, the more it tickles my funny bone.

At first, the feeling was, “Mom is being creative. Let's indulge her.” As time went on, the consensus seemed to be closer to, “Mom is really bored and really strange.” Then came the, “Mom, please take pity on us and keep your cow jokes to yourself.” Next was, “Oh no — not another cow joke.”

Finally, after several years of such foolishness, it became ? in some strange way —endearing to my children that Mom had this log of jokes that are not necessarily funny, but worth a giggle or two. Maybe it is simply because I laugh each time I tell one. The laughter rubs off on them! Amazingly, one of the kids will occasionally ask me to tell a cow joke, or will work to come up with one of their own. In any case, a silly thing has now become another bonding thing in our family, and can bring a good giggle from time to time.

I will spare you an example of my creativity. But I will challenge you to place in your mind a fun little story or joke, or the memory of something — or someone — who makes you laugh. If you are having a difficult day, this can be harder to do. Nevertheless, your day will be a better one if you hang on to a bit of humor.

In the book of Genesis, we learn about the prophet Abraham and his wife, Sarah. They had wanted children for a long time. A very long time.  Finally, when Abraham was 100 and Sarah was 90 years of age, the Lord blessed them and Sarah conceived. I was intrigued when realized that both of them had the same reaction to the news of an impending child coming to them:  They laughed! (Check it out in the 17 th and 21 st chapters of Genesis.)

Reading the cross reference section at the bottom of the page in the Bible, I learned that the root word for "to laugh" has another meaning: "to rejoice." Thus, there is much more to the meaning of the word

And there is more meaning for us, as we treasure the moments we have to rejoice, by participating in the kind of joyful mirth that is good for the soul. A quiet, whisper of a giggle or the happy, “yippee!” kind of moments when the laughter rolls out of us like a giant smiley face. What a simple, delightful way to feel sunshine within.

Elder Neal A. Maxwell had this to say about humor:

A true believer is serious about the living of his life, but he is of good cheer. His humor is the humor of hope, and his mirth is the mirth of modesty, not the hollow laughter or the cutting cleverness of despair. Unlike those of a celebrated devil-may-care lifestyle, his is the quiet heaven-does-care attitude. ( True Believers in Christ [ sound recording ], BYU Sound Services, 1980.)

Good humor seems to help us balance the small annoyances with a better, sunnier perspective so that neither our circumstances nor our own selves seem so serious or overwhelming. The Savior will help fine tune this characteristic as it is sincerely applied on a daily basis.

A giggle a day can be a good thing!

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