Make Me Smile

If you’re feeling blah, what is the one thing you do that you can count on to put a smile on your face?

Smiles and laughter can recharge you and have a great effect on our well-being.   Laughter and good humour is infectious.  The sound of roaring laughter is also contagious.  When laughter is shared, it binds people together and increases happiness and intimacy.  Llaughter also triggers healthy physical changes in the body. Humour and laughter strengthen your immune system, boost your energy,  diminish pain, and protect you from the damaging effects of stress

I love to watch standup comedies, fun sitcoms like Friends, Seinfeld, Whose line is it anyway, Just for laughs etc. I also try to play with my daughter whenever I get time. Children have a natural sense of humour
and laugh much more than adults.

Watching cartoons like Tom & Jerry, Popeye with your child is also a great way to relax at home and enjoy some laughter.

Laughter teaches us not to take everything too seriously. It makes us lighten up and also lightens the mood of those around us.

Whether it is sharing a good joke, relating a humorous anecdote or watching a funny movie – we can inject some humour into our daily life to smile, enhance our personality and spread the good feeling to those around us.

 

Other interesting posts in this category:
1) http://zaphnathpaaneah05.wordpress.com/2014/04/08/smile/
2) http://sabethville.wordpress.com/2014/04/07/dp-daily-prompt-make-me-smile/
3) http://undefinedbydesignblog.wordpress.com/2014/04/07/daily-prompt-make-me-smile-when-youre-smiling-the-whole-world-smiles-with-you/
4) http://diaryofdennis.com/2014/04/07/daily-prompt-make-me-smile/
5) http://tangledupindaydreams.net/2014/04/07/daily-prompt-make-me-smile/
6) http://tangledupindaydreams.net/2014/04/07/daily-prompt-make-me-smile/
7) http://rebeccabarray.com/2014/04/07/smile/
8) http://serendipitouscookery.com/2014/04/07/daily-prompt-make-me-smile/
9) http://littlegirlstory.wordpress.com/2014/04/08/daily-prompt-make-me-smile/
10) http://imagineimmortality.wordpress.com/2014/04/07/make-me-smile-paris-in-the-rain/comment-page-1/

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Things that make me go ROFL

Daily prompt: Tell us about the last time you had a real, deep, crying-from-laughing belly laugh.

I try not to miss my daily dose of Friends at 7pm after work.  It is a real recharger and put s me back in relaxed mode.   All the cast are marvelous actors who have great charisma and the whole unit has great camaraderie.    Joey is my favourite and he never fails to tickle my funny bone.  Other comedy sitcoms I like are ‘Whose line is it anyway’ and Seinfeld.

Standup comedies are fun too.  Russell Peters is a phenomenon and he is a fun to watch.  He has a wonderful understanding of different cultures and he can leave you in stitches.

A daily dose of laughter is a great stress-buster and it invigorates you.  Laughter that originates from your deep belly is a great massage for your internal organs , improves circulation and is contagious.  Laughter yoga clubs (founded by Madan Kataria) are sprouting everywhere in the world.

Comic strips are a great source of fun and  humour.  I  love R K Laxman’s  daily cartoon in the Times of India with his unique ‘common man’.  I also love Dilbert strips about office politics.

When it comes to books it has to be PG Wodehouse with his unique style of writing.  Jeeves never fails to make us laugh.   Then there are TinTin comics which are a fun read.

For more interesting posts on laughter see:

https://sajeevkmenon.wordpress.com/2011/01/04/things-that-make-me-smile/

https://sajeevkmenon.wordpress.com/2011/04/26/laugh-out-loud/

5 Lessons that we can Learn from our Children

 

(This post appeared first on ModernLifeBlogs.)

As parents we are always concerned about inculcating the right values in our children but have you wondered what we can learn from our children?

Curiosity

Children do not bring any preconceived notions or prejudices to the classroom.  So they are always full of wonder and curiosity.   As adults we have to learn to unlearn.  Our false notions and egoistic beliefs stand in the way of our quest for truth.

Energy

A child is a bundle of energy jumping from task to task with effortless ease.  Even after hours of play they do not want to stop.  The reason is they are lost in the present moment and fully enjoy whatever they do.   Children play like there is no tomorrow.

Innocence

Who  does not love an innocent child?  They have no qualms about the future.  They are always honest and say what is on their mind.  They also do not build walls of discrimination based on colour, caste or creed.  Their love is unconditional.

Sunny Smiles

Have you seen a child cry one moment and burst into laughter the very next moment?  They do not brood over trivial quarrels or misunderstandings.  They are able to forgive and forget.  This is one important lesson that we can learn from children.

Laughter

Children are known to laugh a great deal more than adults.  Cartoons, comic books, jokes and mimicking are the best part of childhood. This keeps them intrinsically motivated and it also inspires and changes the mood of all around them.

What are the lessons that you have learnt from your child?

“The secret of genius is to carry the spirit of the child into old age, which means never losing your enthusiasm.”  – Aldous Huxley

Laugh out loud

Picture this scenario.  Everyone is silent.  Then all of a sudden there is a loud rip-roaring laughter…..HA HA HA HA HA.  This can totally change the mood and the atmosphere.

Laughter is an emotion that brings joy, changes the mood and can lift everyones spirits. Laughter is  considered a visual expression of happiness, or an inward feeling of joy. It may be triggered from hearing a joke, being tickled, or other stimuli. It is in most cases a very pleasant sensation.
Laughter is one medicine that is fun, free and easy to use.  Easy to use – because laughter transcends language and culture.  Everywhere in the world people laugh in the same manner Ha Ha or He He or Ho Ho… but basically the syllables are the same.

Anatomically, laughter is caused by the epiglottis constricting the larynx and the study of laughter and its physiological benefits is called gelotology.

Origins of laughter:
A study of a pygmy chimpanzees in a German zoo found that when it was tickled it combined vocalizations and facial gestures much like those made by human infants. The finding suggests that our laughter could have its origins in primates.
Babies begin to laugh when they are around 2-3 months old.  They usually giggle, laugh and sqeal with pleasure,  especially when you play the peekaboo game with them. And parents wait with anxiety to see their baby start to laugh.

Laughter has immense health benefits:
.. It relaxes the whole body – by relieving physical tension and stress
.. laughter strengthens the immune system
.. laughter helps to release endorphins – which promote an overall sense of well being
.. it improves the function of blood vessels by increasing blood flow and protects the heart from heart attack
… it acts as a body massage. When you laugh from the belly, it gives your organs a thorough shake and it can even bring tears to your eyes

Laughter also has social benefits:
Using humor and laughter in relationships allows you to:
..Be more spontaneous. Humor gets you out of your head and away from your troubles.
..Release inhibitions. Your fear of holding back and holding on are set aside.
..Express your true feelings. Deeply felt emotions are allowed to rise to the surface.

Laughter Yoga:
Madan Kataria introduced a new form of Yoga called Laughter Yoga in 1995, with merely a handful of persons. Today, it has become a worldwide phenomenon with more than 6000 Social Laughter Clubs in about 60 countries.
Here a group of people who may be complete strangers meet and they just smile and laugh together.  And this sets up a very good atmosphere .
Laughter has a domino effect.. it is contagious.   When you see a person laugh heartily it encourages us to ask – What is the joke? And to laugh together

Do you know what makes you laugh out loud?
Is it  a humorous book .. for me PG Wodehouse is irresistible. Or is it a funny movie – The Naked Gun, or a TV show like Friends, Whose line is it anyway?  Or is it a stand up comedy or just listening to jokes? 

In life we are struck by joys and sorrows which can rock our boat.  In such times we can
.. share a happy moment with family and friends to help to lift our spirits
..count our blessings
..look at things from a different perspective

William James the American author said, “We don’t laugh because we’re happy, we are happy because we laugh.”

Here are some interesting reading on laughter:
http://www.helpguide.org/life/humor_laughter_health.htm
http://www.laughteryoga.org/

Love is in the air

When there is music in the wind
And butterflies flirt with flowers
When time comes to standstill
Then I know love is in the air

When blades of grass dance
And dew drops glisten on leaves
When birds sing in chorus
Then I know love is in the air

 

 

When there is radiance in the moons glow
And  magic in the stars twinkle
When clouds pour ethereal rain
Then I know love is in the air

When there is a spring in your step
And a smile on your face
When you are at a loss for words
Then I know love is in the air

When two hearts beat as one
And tears and laughter play
The divine song of the soul
Then I know love is in the air

© copyright skm February 11th, 2011