I laughed right out loud today.

No.  Really.

I did.

The days were becoming stressful.

My daughter said, “Come stay with me.”  So, I did.

Then she asked, “Hungry?”

She prepared for our dinner the best pot pie E.V.E.R.

Then she asked if I wanted to watch a new show on Netflix called Nailed It.  It’s a baking show that I’ve never watched so I said sure.

At first, I thought this show is just silly.  My tense mind wouldn’t or couldn’t suspend this time of fear and grief.  Until.

Until, at one unexpected scene, I laughed.  I felt the laugh deep inside me, not bubbling out, but bursting forth.  This continued as we binged watched it late into the night.  I had the best night’s sleep in a long time; I even fell asleep in the middle of my prayers.

Where did that joy from?  It was like you know how when you wake up in the morning and you stretch.  You know, the whole body stretch arms overhead and toes pointed to the foot of the bed.  It was kind of like that – a burst of stretching where you get that feel-good feeling that comes from the stretch – science or no one else can explain where that feeling comes from; only that it does.

Then I knew.  All the sadness; the stress; the loneliness that I’ve carried for a very long time demanded attention as I saw, felt and grieved a doubling of these same emotions.  You know, the ones that we all are feeling – all of us from around the world – from the Coronavirus 19 Pandemic.

But it is so important to allow a burst of laughter, hope and faith to burst forth if it wants to.

Mine came from my faith, being safer at home, having food to eat, having my daughter and dogs close by and the realization that it feels good to feel good if for but a moment, even if we don’t know why.

Most of our county is under a Stay at Home (shelter-in-place edict).  Let’s use this time to remember to stretch those muscles of joy.  We can do this by focusing our attention on family, friends, pets – through thankfulness or helping virtually through our gifts of making face masks, donations, music, you know, – sharing what ya got!

Today, I share a show that makes me laugh.  It made me feel like I was watching an old I Love Lucy show – where you are both embarrassed for her while loving her humility.   I so want to be on this show!

 

God gave us laughter to cope with these times in our broken world with this promise:

“Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.”  Luke:21