Remembering to Laugh!

I just had a great visit with an Al-Anon friend. After a couple of hours of sharing with a little bit of crying, I remembered something that has helped me in the past: to laugh at the crazy people in my life.

I remembered how much it helped to take this stance when my spouse was toward the end of his drinking days. Although quite intelligent, he would say the stupidest things in his denial. My daughter and I would laugh rather than get upset.

It not only worked to lighten the mood in the house, but I hadn't done anything for which I had to make amends.

And I felt better, too, because I can just take things way too seriously...

Lighten Up! Let It Begin With Me.

So my goal lately, after a long time of being serious, is to lighten up. I decided this after watching the audience's response to a popular circuit speaker. They were laughing. They needed to laugh. Too often we Al-Anon's forget about humor. AA's Big Book recognizes that alcoholics are not a glum lot. And neither are we. In fact, newcomers are often surprised when we laugh in meetings about alcoholism. How can this be funny? they think. And I often think the same thing, not just about alcoholism but every thing else. Oh, woe is me. Life is so hard. The world is such a scary place. But I'm trying something different, to look at the bright side of things, even the funny side. So "let it begin with me" is a good slogan to use, since I know I can laugh at myself without hurting anyone's feelings. And when I speak, I can tell my funny stories about how crazy I was and still am sometimes. However, that doesn't mean we don't talk about the serious business of recovery. It's just that people tend to perk up and maybe listen a little better if they've had a giggle or belly laugh and thus are relaxed. So I'm still learning, thank God!