I guess I'm supposed to feel this way. Dr. B said it usually takes up to six months to recover from the kind of surgery I had. He told me to be nice to myself. And thank God every morning for another day.
So, OK, I'll stop complaining and try to keep a positive attitude. Remember the Johnny Mercer tune? Ya gotta acc-cent-uate the positive....
While waiting in the dr's office, I came across the Folsom-El Dorado Hills magazine, and in it this:
lighten up!
ONE-SEVENTH OF YOUR LIFE IS SPENT ON MONDAYS
According to social philosopher and musician Jimmy Buffet, "if we didn't laugh we'd all go insane." The human hangover of having more things to do and less time to do them is catching up with the soul-full/empty feeling that there should be more to life. In the past 20 years, I have talked with nearly a million people on the subject of a well-developed sense of humor. That simple little spiritual life that reminds us that we are human. I frequently ask my audience of they will change their mind...or keep the one they have?
Just in case you didn't get the memo, happiness is an inside job. No one thing or person will ever make you truly happy. Now, don't get me wrong Simon, a shiny new Lexus is a beautiful possession. But, it has no power to import happiness. As humans, we cunningly assign that new car, lover or new puppy dog with the authority to inflict happiness upon us. Yet, we all know that cars break down, puppy dogs chew favorite shoes, and lovers ~ uh, well,you get the idea. So, with an improved sense of humor, we should be able to play with reality and think a little bit more innovatively. See if the following list makes sense, or at the very least, makes you smile:
- Indecision is the key to flexibility.
You can't tell which way the train went by looking at the tracks.
There is absolutely no substitute for genuine lack of preparation.
Nostalgia isn't what it used to be.
The facts, although interesting, are irrelevant.
Someone who thinks logically is a nice contrast to the real world.
Things are more like they are today than they ever were before.
Everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler.
This is probably as bad as it can get, but don't count on it.
If you smile when things go wrong, you have someone in mind to blame.
Your sense of humor is your best weapon for survival. Current research supports that laughter is healthy, both restorative and preventively speaking. Laughter decreases stress hormone levels, and has been known to reduce complications and recurrence of heart disease after a heart attack. Laughter can also increase our immune system's ability to fight off infection. Wow, who knew government research could be so personally beneficial?
So how do you improve your sense of humor? It's simple: as you begin to look for humor, it finds you. The psychological principle of reticular activation says that whatever we think about, we bring about. Ask yourself every morning, "where's the humor today?"
Everyone has a sense of humor. The problem is though that not everyone is consistently exercising their humor being. I guess that stems from a difficult childhood or an ignorant ogre of a boss who said to stop laughing and get back to work. How about start laughing and get back to productivity? After all, people who enjoy their job get more done than those who sit and grumble. Laughter is about options and solutions. When we laugh, we feel triumphant. There is no evidence that life is meant to be taken so seriously.
--Jim Pelley