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The Need to Lead With Compassion

Have you ever made a mistake and were treated as if you’d just committed the biggest sin in the world?

Have you ever had your heart broken?

Have you ever suffered a horrific loss?

Have you ever felt so depressed you didn’t want to get out of bed?

Have you ever experienced anxiety?

Have you ever been homesick?

Have you ever prayed for something for a long time and realized the prayer might not be answered in the way you like?

Have you ever been stabbed in the back by someone you trusted?

Have you ever sat by the bedside of a dying loved one that is being taken too soon?

Have you ever gone through a divorce?

Have you ever said something unkind to someone and later felt disgusted with yourself and like a total jerk?

Have you ever had a huge fight with your spouse or friend, but had to go on with your day with a smile on your face anyway?

Have you ever had to tell an aging parent that you’re going to need to move them in to a nursing home?

Have you ever been in an abusive relationship and don’t see a way out?

Have you ever struggled with major self-doubt or even self-loathing?

Have you ever received news of something growing in your body that threatens to take your life?

Have you ever struggled with changing a bad habit, but your attempts are fruitless?

Have you ever felt miserably alone in a crowded world?

Friends, we don’t know what people are going through in their personal lives.  There are all kinds of opportunities in this world for pain, heartache, and suffering.  More than likely, you’ve been there.  I’ve been there, too.

We’ve all experienced a rude checker at the grocery store, a less than friendly customer service rep after being on hold for 27 minutes, an aggressive driver on the road, or someone who snaps at us for no reason.  This could just be a clueless person with poor manners, but more than likely, it’s someone going through a difficult time and their burden is manifesting itself in ugly ways.

Can you imagine If everyone walked around with a news-type ticker detailing what turmoil or pain was going on under the surface?  I think we’d be shocked at what some are shouldering at any given moment.

Some people hide pain well, managing to keep a smile on their face.  However, If you were to really look in their eyes, you would see their smile is only on the surface.  Others may act rude, short-tempered, or angry.  This behavior, while not a good thing, is often caused by fear, powerlessness, rejection, guilt, and vulnerability.

While we can’t change the fact that pain and suffering will occur, we can make a conscious decision on how we conduct ourselves with those we come in contact with in-person, over the phone, or online.

Let’s open our hearts.  Let’s extend grace.  Let’s think before we speak and act.  Let’s listen.  Let’s look in each others eyes.  Let’s open our arms.  Let’s forgive.  Let’s be kind to one another.

Let’s lead with compassion.

With love,

Jill xx

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When Overcome by Tragedy

Tragedy.  Pain.  Terror.  Suffering.  Sadness.  Fear.  Injustice.  Evil. 

Are you feeling overcome by all the tragedy that’s going on in the world today?  I am.

As the death toll rises due to the horrific actions of a madman in Nice, France this week, I’m thinking of the individual lives that have been stolen away.  Who were they?  What did they dream about doing one day?  What made them laugh?  What were their hobbies?  Do they have siblings?  How did their family hear the news?  How will their family get through this?

I’ve thought about the driver/shooter too.  What took place in his life that would allow him to make the choice he did that day? Was he ever bullied?  Abused by his parents?  Was he innately evil?  Mentally ill?  Could someone have come alongside him in his life and have been a positive influence, so none of this would have happened?  How could this have been stopped??

We may never have answers to some of these questions, but I think it’s important to ask them.

Don’t allow the death toll numbers and multiple incidences of tragedy you hear on the news desensitize you to the individual lives and needs involved.   What most breaks your heart?  Is it the pain that these people’s families will experience?  Find out how you can serve people in your own community experiencing the pain of loss?  Is it that a child was orphaned?  Think about becoming a foster parent or an adoptive parent.  Is mental illness involved in a situation?  Find out how you can help.

Friends, instead of feeling overwhelmed, fear-filled, and sick from these senseless acts, use your heartache to help others.  Take action.  There are people out there, right in your own community, or maybe even across the world, that need you.

Thank you for taking this to heart and for being a source of good and light in this world.

Go and love.

Jill xx

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The Power of Love – 5 Ways to Spread Love Today

Have you ever seen something horrible take place and you feel like you–just one little person–have no way of making a difference that will matter? 

This feeling of powerlessness comes from a belief that you have no control over your environment.  Your environment including your own personal space, the space around your closest relationships, your neighborhood, your local, regional and state-wide community, your country, and the world as a whole.

The truth is we do have the power to take action and make a difference and it’s as simple as loving one another.

“Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.” —  Leo Buscaglia

Did you catch that last part?  The potential to turn a life around.  Through simple acts of love.

There’s nothing in Leo’s list that you and I don’t have the power to initiate today.

Here are five ideas to take action and begin spreading love today:

#RANDOMLOVELETTER: I recently came across an Instagram challenge called #randomloveletter.  The creators of this challenge asked participants to write a positive note and post it in a public place (power pole, library book, restaurant menu, park bench, waiting room) for someone to find.  No fancy stationary necessary.  Just write your note on a post-it, scratch pad paper, or the back of a recycled piece of paper.  Who knows how your written words will bless someone?

There’s an annual challenge that takes place in June every year in which you place your love letter somewhere, take a picture and tag it with #randomloveletter on Instagram and/or Twitter.  Click here for the 2016 challenge recap and to get some inspiration for your notes.  You may choose to participate in this challenge each year, but let’s agree to keep the love flowing throughout the year.  Is there such thing as too many random love letters?  I think not.

MORE LOVE LETTERS:  Hannah Brencher founded a movement whose mission is to “Make Love Famous”.  How awesome is that!! There are three ways to participate and help Hannah with her mission:

  1. Mail a letter to someone who is experiencing a tough spot in their lives.  The love letter recipients have been secretly nominated and will receive the surprise love letters from people like you and me from across the globe.  Their nomination stories appear right here.  Do you know someone who could use a good dose of love right now?  Click here to nominate them.
  2. Leave a letter.  Much like the #RandomLoveLetter, you write a lovely letter and leave it in a public place for someone to find.
  3. Know a college student?  Hannah has started a movement in which students can start a More Love Letters chapter on their campus.  This so would have been up my alley when I was in college!!

PAY IT FORWARD:  I’m sure you’ve heard of this idea…you respond to a person’s kindness to oneself by being kind to someone else. Maybe you buy a cup of coffee for the unsuspecting person behind you in line, or extend a wish of goodwill to a stranger you cross paths with, or call a helpful clerk’s supervisor to praise their excellent customer service.  All these gestures promote love and goodwill.

There’s an actual day to pay it forward too! Although I hope you won’t wait to pay it forward, the next official day is April 28, 2017.  While you’re paying it forward throughout the year, you could also be planning on a big push for that actual day with your friends, kids, church group, or school.  Get people excited and talking about it.  The creators of this day are hoping to inspire over 10 million acts of kindness around the world on April 28, 2017. Spread the love, friends!

The Pay It Forward Day website has some great resources and ideas on how to get involved for individuals, businesses, and schools.  Check that out here.

VIRTUALLY SHARE RANDOM ACTS OF KINDNESS STORIES TO INSPIRE OTHERS:  Performing a random act of kindness is just like the pay it forward idea, but because we live in a digital age and so many of us spend heaps of time online, why not focus on spreading love virtually through inspiring stories of random acts of kindness.  The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation has a great website with a collection of these types of inspiring stories, videos, and quotes that you can share with others to light up their day.  Click here to be inspired and share away!

THE POWER OF PRAYER:  Lift your hearts and your voices in prayer, my friends.  My faith calls me to pray without ceasing and I’ve seen firsthand how prayer changes things.  God is LOVE and He is listening.

Friends, I hope you’ve been inspired to take action and love boldly today.

Here’s to changing the world with one act of love at a time!

With love,

Jill

P.S. Since we’re on the subject of love…did you know there’s a whole day committed to hugging?  For real!  National Hugging Day takes place every year on January 21st. Why wait though?  Let’s get some practice and go hug on someone today.

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The Value in Learning From The Young

When’s the last time you sat down and tried to learn something new from a young person?  A time in which you actually asked them to show you how to do something?  Whether it be how to draw a dinosaur from a 7-year-old, how to perform a dance move from a 10-year-old, or how to solve a math problem from a 15-year-old — youngsters are literally a treasure trove of knowledge and it’s our loss if we leave this resource untapped.

I think we adults have a tendency to slip into know-it-all mode–wanting to impart our vast and excellent knowledge on the young. Unfortunately, along the way, we miss out on some pretty great learning and relational opportunities.

This reminder to embrace what the young have to offer most recently came to me as my son, a 19-year-old college student living across the country, told me that my gift for mother’s day could either be 1.)  A custom-designed tee-shirt (he makes some really cool stuff!), or 2.) Five 1-hour guitar lessons (redeemable during his time home in the summer).

A little history… I’ve never played an instrument, and have shared with my son and husband over the years that I was probably one of those people that just doesn’t have the “music gene”.  I also was thinking that since my son had never been formally coached on guitar, that he might not be a great person for a beginner to learn from.

Well, in a moment of what I now see as brilliance, I chose his offer of guitar lessons.

Turns out he’s a really good teacher and I’m learning this beautiful Ben Harper song.  So, whether this is the only song I ever learn, or I continue on after he goes back to school, I wouldn’t trade in the experience to learn from this youngster.

So, how about you?  Will you join me this summer in asking a kid to teach you something?  Maybe you have kids at home, grand-kids, nieces/nephews, neighborhood kids, or kids at church.  It’s prime time to be intentional in engaging with these youngsters and learn something new.

Enjoy the fresh perspective!!

Jill xx

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Where is The Love?

Have you ever tried to say or do something and it feels like you have a golf ball stuck in your throat?  This is how I’ve felt as I’ve attempted to work through my feelings in order to write this post this week.

I’ve been thinking about love.  Brotherly love.

I’ve been thinking about heartache, pain and suffering.  The kind that people all over the world are experiencing.

I’ve been thinking about how great it is that the internet offers a place for people to share thoughts and ideas—support, understanding, oneness…love.

And then I think about how awful it is that the internet offers a place for people to share thoughts and ideas—ugliness, self-righteousness, hostility…hate.

Part of the golf ball stuck in my throat feeling is that as an optimist, I’m seeing things that are darkening the lens that I see and live my life through.

It came to me this morning that this darkness that has cast a shadow over our world provides us an opportunity to see the contrast.  To see where the cracks are.  To see where the voids are.  To see the places where we can step in and make a difference.  Through love.

The good news is that we’re all capable of being a loving force in this world.  No doctorate degree needed.

A simple act of love can change things.  Love can heal…can change hearts…can bind us together.  Love is a force that is more powerful than hate.

Not sure how to begin or where to start?  Recently I wrote about just doing the next thing when you’re stuck or overwhelmed–that same concept works here.  Don’t overthink it–just go and love on someone.  Be nice to the person who is painfully slow in front of you at the grocery store.  Be kind to your significant other (yes, some of us just need to start at home).  Go and hang out with someone that’s different than you and love them by listening with an ear for understanding (Note: listening with an ear for understanding doesn’t mean you will agree, it just means you hear them).  Tell someone that you appreciate them and why.  Find out where you can spread love in your community through volunteerism.  Perform a random act of kindness in the name of love.

There are many small ways to begin, and these small ways, practiced on a consistent basis, will change the world, one act at a time.

We just need to act.

Starting today.

With love,

Jill xx

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Are You Making Decisions Based on Fear or Joy?

As summer rolls around, there will be lots of opportunities to do stuff.  It’s a nice feeling when we have time, choices, and a variety of opportunities in front of us, but just make sure you’re not making decisions based on the fear of missing out.

Fear of missing out, or FOMO, is when a person experiences anxiety at the thought of missing out on an exciting or interesting event.  Chances are, when people make decisions based on their fear of missing out, they aren’t thinking about how missing out might actually bring them joy.  Yes, there’s a term for that too!  JOMO = Joy of Missing Out.

Imagine on Friday night a bunch of your friends decide to get together at the new (and highly anticipated) restaurant in town.  You’ve heard the food is divine, and to top it off, this particular evening they have an award-winning cellist playing.  It all sounds great, but the reality is, you’ve worked hard all week and you’re dead-tired.  You have two choices.  Which wins?  FOMO or JOMO?  P.S. JOMO includes kicking up your feet in your favorite chair or couch, pajamas, and a good book or movie.  Unless you’re under the age of 35, I’m thinking most of us would seize the opportunity to embrace the joy of missing out.

Either way, a life in which we make decisions based on joy, as opposed to reacting to fear, is always a good choice.

So, as opportunities present themselves in the coming days, weeks, months, and years, try and run your decisions through your FOMO/JOMO filter.

The switch from FOMO to JOMO will be difficult for some, while others will find the transition easy and life-affirming.

One way to do this is learning to understand the underlying factors for your FOMO.  On the flip-side, it’s also important to understand what it is that brings you the most joy.

Following are a couple suggestions:

  1.  Make a list of likes/priorities and dislikes/unimportant  

You know I’m big on getting things out on paper.  Some of my best thinking comes from brain-dumping and mind-mapping.  There’s such power in emptying your mind of all thoughts on a certain topic and then seeing them there in front of you in black and white.

So, get your paper out and divide it into two columns.

On the left side, write out what activities (including doing nothing) you value and get the most out of.  On this same column write out who (by name) is most important to you.  For example, if one of the activities you include as a priority is building relationships, then make sure to be clear on who or what type of person you would like to invest your time in.  If you don’t narrow it down, you may find yourself saying yes to things and people that meet your goal of building relationships, but in reality you’re investing your time and energy into the wrong people.

On the right side of your paper, write out things you don’t consider a valuable investment of your time.  Include the things you have a tendency to get sucked into, but that aren’t necessarily important to you.  Think about the things that you say yes to because of your fear of missing out.  You’re going to have to be real honest with yourself here.

  1. Reflect on the causes for both your fears and joys.    

FEAR

Now that you’ve got this all down on paper, it’s time to understand what’s causing you fear of missing out on something.  Here are some possible reasons:

Fear of not being in the “know”.
Fear of not being invited again.
Fear of others experiencing things that you won’t.
Fear of being left out.
Fear of living a life that isn’t what people would expect from you.
Fear of disappointing others.  (Hand raised over here!  I’m a recovering people-pleaser and can attest to the hard work this takes to overcome.)

Whatever the reason for your fear of missing out, the key is to identify it and begin working toward eradicating it.  Sometimes all you’ll need is to identify the problem and make a decision to stop thinking or acting a certain way.  Other times, you’ll have to do some soul-searching and maybe even partake in counseling to overcome your fears.

JOY

Now, for the fun part!  Spend some time reflecting on what brings you joy.

Is it from spending time with people you love?  Your faith?  Wild experiences?  Helping others?  Spending time alone?  A hobby?  Your work?

You’ll find that when you frame your choices around doing that which brings you joy, any FOMO will be replaced with JOMO.  As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “For everything you have missed, you have gained something else.”

The key to JOMO is being selective with who, what, where, and when you spend your time and attention.  Yes, you miss out on things, but you won’t mind because you’re CHOOSING JOY!

Have you experienced FOMO?  Do you think framing your decisions with the idea of JOMO will help you?  Please leave  a comment below, I’d love to hear from you.

Jill xx

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Do The Next Thing

You know what I want for all of us?  Hint: It’s my favorite thing to write about on this blog and to personally strive for in my everyday life: Joyful, intentional, balanced living.

Dictionary.com defines these words as follows:

Joyful:  Full of joy, as a person or one’s heart; glad; delighted.
Intentional: Done with intention or on purpose.
Balanced: Being in harmonious or proper arrangement or adjustment, proportion,etc.

Joy.  Purpose.  Harmony.  I feel a song coming on!!

If only it were as easy as singing a song and — voila! Done.  We live happily ever after, day after day, with joy, purpose, and harmony.

The problem is when we have those those long days (and sometimes even weeks) where we feel frustrated, stuck, exhausted, or overwhelmed.

Those awful days that steal our joy, have us forgetting that we do have a significant purpose, and those days that we feel so out of whack, that balance is the farthest thing from what we feel.

I’ve just experienced a bit of this feeling recently and after I let myself sit in the dumps for a bit, I decided to follow one piece of advice that is like a miracle cure to get you back on the joyful, intentional, balanced train.

Do.  The.  Next.  Thing.  

That’s it!

Remember the song, Put One Foot In Front of The Other?  It’s as simple as that.

It sounds pretty easy, especially when you’re singing that song, but when you’re feeling depressed, unmotivated, confused, anxious, overwhelmed, ticked-off, unsure, worthless, unhappy, or even just lazy, it’s not easy — at all.

I find when things are hard like this, the key is to break projects down into small actionable steps and pick one thing to do.  Now don’t overthink it.  If you start to overthink it, don’t allow yourself.  Pick one thing and start with that.  Who cares if it’s not the most critical thing that needs to be done?!  We’re not in the frame of mind to be hyper-organized right now!  After you do that first thing, then do the next thing.

For example, say you have people coming over in a couple hours and you’re on the verge of cancelling everything because your house is trashed, you’re in a bad mood, and the cat just puked on the floor.

My suggestion is to clean the cat puke up first, otherwise you might step in it later and then you’re really gonna fly off the handle or just sit down and cry.

Then…

Make yourself go into one room that people you have coming over will see, jot down the top 2-3 things that need to be done and do the one on the top of your list. Then…do the next thing.  Then…do the next thing.  Then, move on to the next room and do the same thing.

Did you see what happened?  You just got that one room ready by practicing doing the next thing.

At this point, as you begin to tackle the next room, a strange whistling sound may escape your mouth!  Yes, you may begin to feel happy, because you’re getting stuff done, my friend!

Now, imagine you’re so flustered that the thought of even writing a 2-3 item to-do list per room will send you over the edge.  That’s ok.  You, my friend, are going to go into one of the rooms that people will see and look down or off to the side and pick something up.  Take that thing and put it in its proper place.  Continue in that same room, just doing the next thing until the room is sufficiently ready to be used by you and your guests.

These “next things” can span from changing the next diaper, to picking up the next dust-bunny, to writing the next check, to paying your bills, to pulling the next weed, to putting the next dish in the dishwasher, to writing that next sentence in your journal, to calling the next house repair person on your list, to writing that next proposal, to mailing that next condolence card, to filling out the next online form, to calling the next person you need to follow up with on something….

You see where I’m going with this?  There is major power in just doing the next thing.  When you create momentum by doing the next thing, it will help bring you to a place of joy, intention, and balance.  That’s the way we’re supposed to be living!

You might not be able to achieve it in one afternoon, but as that momentum builds, you start creating order in your life which allows room for joy, intention, and balance.

Here’s to you leading a joyful, intentional, and balanced life, one step at a time!

Jill xx

P.S. You know others are going through this same thing, how about sharing this with them to help get them moving in the right direction?

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How an Early-Morning Routine Will Make Your Life Better

What’s your morning routine like?  Slow and relaxing, or rushed and stressful?  Are you an actual “morning person”, or does it take at least two cups of coffee for the sleep cobwebs to clear and for you to even consider uttering a word?  Are you productive in the morning?

About 18 months ago, I began a morning routine that has drastically changed my life for the better.  I began waking up around 4:30 a.m. — on purpose!  Why on earth would a sane person do this?

For me, the driving force was my desire to write.  My daily routine and choices at the time didn’t allow me time in the day or evening to write, so I had to create some brand new space within the existing 24-hour period.

If you’re cringing at the idea of getting up before the crack of dawn even thinks about cracking, let me share my three favorite things about this time of day (or is it night??).  First of all, it’s the most quiet and peaceful time of day.  There’s really nothing like it.  No one’s calling or knocking and if you have kids or animals, they should still be sleeping.  Second, your will-power and focus is super strong early in the morning because you don’t have anything else pulling at you, and you’ve not exhausted many brain cells yet. And lastly, whatever you accomplish during this time feels like a bonus.  It’s as if you’ve created a few extra magical hours in the day that no one else knows about.

Well, I want you to know about these magical hours!  I want you to experience the good that can happen in your life by creating an early-morning routine.

By creating this new space in my day, I had to make some life changes.  In order to get up at 4:30 a.m., I had to go to bed earlier.  I do best on 7-8 hours of sleep, so that means lights out at 8:30 or 9 p.m.  This was a big adjustment for me because I really enjoyed settling down and watching television about that time.  So much so, that we decided to go ahead and get rid of the television altogether.  This may sound severe, but taking that distraction away and saving on the Cable bill worked for us.  (P.S. Don’t worry, my husband was on board…he didn’t watch the tube much anyway.)

So now I can’t tell you what’s happening on HGTV, Food Network or Bravo, but I get to write, and that’s been such a valuable outlet for me.  And, because I choose to get up extra early, this also allows me time to work on other things that are important to me, both spiritually and physically.

If you don’t already have an early-morning routine, I strongly recommend you try it out.  Just try for one month and see how it works for you.  I’m telling you–it’s life-changing!  I’ve heard from several die-hard night owls, that switched to an early-morning routine, and they say they will never go back to their night owl ways.

A few tips to help you as you think about trying this out:

  1.  What’s your why?  What’s important enough for you to make this change?  I choose to focus on mind, body, and soul stuff.  When I put these three areas at the top of my priority list, everything else in my life is better.
  2.  Don’t cheat yourself on sleep.  A proper amount of sleep is critical to your well-being.  The National Sleep Foundation recommends 7+ hours/night for adults.
  3. What gets written down, gets done.  Write out a schedule for your morning routine and follow it.  Making your morning routine a habit helps you to stick with it.
    Here’s my schedule as an example:

Monday – Friday

4:40 a.m.: Wake up and give thanks for three things before getting out of bed.
4:45 a.m.: Make coffee and do neck exercises.
4:50 a.m.: Pray and Bible study.
5:30 a.m.: Write.
6:15 a.m.: Exercise 3x/week.  Read for fun 2x/week.
7:00 a.m.: Feed dogs.
7:05 a.m.: Make/eat breakfast.
7:20 a.m.: Play Bananagrams.
7:30 a.m.: Shower/dress/tidy/fetch the dogs.
8:00 a.m.: Begin work day.

I’d love to hear about your early-morning routine, if you already have one.  How is your life better because of it?  If you don’t already have an early-morning routine, I’d love to hear that you’ll give it a shot.  Let me know in the comments below.

Have a happy day!

Jill xx

 

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Not Listening When You Should Be?

It was only a few weeks ago that I wrote an article titled, “The Art of Listening Well“.  I wrote it because, as I stated in that article, “The lack of listening skills has declined in our fast paced digital world, and I expect will only get worse.”  Friends, I was/am sincerely concerned for us, a world in which we get too busy with “stuff” to focus on the living, breathing, important things right in front of us.

Weeeellllllll, today I stand before you guilty of being one of those awful non-listeners.  The worst part of my non-listening crime was that the recipient the last couple of weeks has been one of the most important people in my life–my husband.  To top it off, he is a man of few words!!  If he’s speaking, I need to be listening!

What has been “more” important these last weeks?  Nothing.

My excuse: I’ve stretched myself too thin, have a lot on my mind.   The truth is, I have allowed my busyness to infringe on the communication with my husband.  My busyness and stretching is not his problem.

I share a real-time example here from my experience with my husband.  Are there people in your life that have received your less-than-attentive ear lately?  Your children, a good friend, your spouse, your parent, your sibling?

These people just listed are not the “chit-chat at a party” type of people.  These are YOUR people.  They deserve nothing but the best from us.  Don’t you think?

Sometimes it’s not enough to realize what you’re doing (like I have) and hope it doesn’t repeat.  In this blog, we need bullet points!!

Here are a few thoughts that I’m personally going to be using:

  • Acknowledge you’re being a lazy or non-listener.  You know, “they” say the first step is admitting the problem.
  • Set rules or triggers that surround future communication with “your people”.  For example, when one of these people enters the room, lay down your phone, close your book, and make good, solid eye contact.  I remember a man who said that he and his wife would take their children’s faces in their hands when they were communicating to ensure that both parties were listening intently.  I am so going to cradle my man’s face in my hands when we’re talking from now on! ; )
  • Ask the other person to call you out on it.  Crucial note: don’t allow your feelings to be hurt and don’t argue or try and defend yourself.  Thank them for helping to make you aware and move on.
  • Enjoy the intimacy you experience as a result of your newly honed listening habit.  Ah, the fruits of your labor!

Wait!  I think I hear my hubs coming.  Gotta run.  Getting into full listening stance with hands ready to cradle his face!  ; )

Here’s to taking steps to protect our most valuable relationships.

Jill xx

Please share this post…it may be the answer to many relationship woes.

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Laughter is the best medicine

When’s the last time you had a really good laugh? The kind where you either cry, nearly hyperventilate, or pee your pants.

This type of laughter has got to be one of THE best feelings and we adults need more of it!

Did you know that the average four-year-old laughs 300-500 times per day, while the average 40-year-old laughs ONLY 7-15 times per day? There’s something wrong with this picture. Yes, we as adults have more on our “plates”, but let’s not take ourselves too seriously. I think we must all agree to engage in more laughter!

Why is laughter so important?

Besides the obvious – that it makes you feel good and brings you happiness – there are lots of other benefits, too. Here are several:

Laughter is good for those around you. When others see you laugh, it makes them feel good, smile, and maybe even join in on the laughter. Perhaps a strategy to work towards world peace?

Laughter is a universal sign of happiness. There are many unusual cultural gestures and behaviors that may cause you to be arrested in some countries, but I’d venture to guess that laughter will not get you thrown in prison. It will most likely draw you closer to someone. Laughter is a bond like no other.

Laughter reduces stress. Have you ever laughed really hard over a stressful event, because you just can’t believe it even happened? Recently, something really ridiculous, not right, and a real bummer happened to my husband and as he was breaking the news to me, we both began laughing uncontrollably. I’m telling you, it really lightened the mood and helped make a pretty stressful situation more bearable.

Laughter is a natural mood enhancer. Laughter triggers the release of endorphins, the chemicals in your brain that make you feel good. This is the same thing that happens when runners achieve a “runner’s high”.

Laughter can ease your pain. These same endorphins can also inhibit pain signals in your body. I remember experiencing a great deal of pain after having my appendix removed when I was a little kid, and my brother stuck corn in his nose to try and make me laugh. I think our laughing may have actually decreased my pain–at least temporarily.

Laughter is good for your heart. Laughter gets your blood pumping, which increases oxygen flow to your body’s tissues. This keeps your organs happy and your cardiovascular system in good shape.

Laughter is good for the grieving heart. A friend’s beloved father passed away recently, and while she was making plans to spend a day with her mom and sister, they realized that since they were going to pick up his ashes from the funeral home early on in the day, they’d just have to bring him along to lunch at Cracker Barrel. The thought of this gave them all a much needed laugh.  Laughing when you’re sad is very therapeutic.

In an effort for us to catch up to the young’uns and their 300-500 laughs per day, let’s share some laughter today. I’ve posted some of my favorite funny videos and, in turn, I’d love it if you’d share your favorite funny video link or even a funny story in the comments.

Commence the laughter…

You’ve heard of twin talk, right? These two take the cake!

Preciousness x 4…

The singing trio…

I’ve soooo been this lemur while in class, meetings, and church!

This cute older couple is trying to figure out how to take a picture on their computer…

A cute version of “Take This Job and Shove It.”  This baby is laughing at his daddy ripping up a rejection letter he’d just received. Good attitude little one!

Our dog has a similar look when she’s guilty. Denver is too precious!

I hope these videos have upped your laughter quota for the day.  What’s your favorite laugh-out-loud video?  Share in the comments below.

Now go spend the day with someone who makes you laugh!

Jill xx

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