Laughter, what is this thing that makes us feel so good?  If one can laugh then it makes everything alright, even if it is just for that one moment.  I love to laugh, especially when I can laugh until my sides ache.  It does not matter what it is that gets me there, I really just like the experience, and I love when the laughter has died down, how just a memory of it can get me smiling and feeling good all over again.

It is said that when a person smiles, they use up to 12 to 15 face muscles, so instead of a face lift, just smile a lot, it is so much better than going under the knife. If a laugh uses 12 face muscles, then a laugh, a real laugh, the guttural from your belly sort of laugh, must use more right? Well to verify I went to my ever so steadfast companion of choice for questions, yeah you got it Google.  I love Google, thanks to those that invented it, it has reduced inquiry time for me, and actually its existence encourages me to be inquisitive and to ask.

According to research, people laugh when they are feeling good with themselves and those around them, when they are around people they trust, it even says that trust can be built up when people share a laugh together.  Laughter bonds people and it can deflate a particularly tense situation and has been known to diffuse anger.  People who are comfortable with themselves and their situation are more apt to laugh harder than those that might be laughing superficially for politeness.  You know how it is when you are in a situation where you are not in your comfort zone and people around you are laughing at something?  You laugh to appear a part of the situation though you may not find the joke particularly amusing. We also laugh out of embarrassment and at times nervousness.

What I love the most is the laughter of a child, when a baby gurgles (that is what it sounds like, the gurgling of a cheerful river as it meanders by), my heart lifts and lightens and I cannot help but feel good.  Baby laughter is infectious to me, I hear a child laugh and cannot I want to laugh as well, it feels good to hear, that joyful, laughter of children full of abandon.  Children laugh so openly and honestly with no agenda or motive!

When I laugh I am transformed, the laughter reflects what I feel inside, shows my contentment and mirth, even if for just a moment.  I am glad I am able to laugh and I have the courage to laugh out loud.  Laughter keeps me going, gives me an outlet for my pent-up energy, and allows me to share with others.  Laughter has allowed me through the years to keep the child in me intact.  I can still joke and take jokes, and am still be able to laugh at myself.  Laughter can make one, act braver than they actually feel, when faced with adversity or even some levels of danger, it is difficult to think that a person who is scared would laugh, yet if they have the courage to laugh, they appear braver and might even make the offending party nervous moving them from an adversarial position into one of an ally.

When one laughs out loud, all others want to know what is so funny; I think they look at that person with some level of envy wishing they too could be that happy.  Laughter can be infectious in a good way, one person starts laughing and it moves to the next and the next.  Very soon all are laughing and feeling good.   Laughter knows no age, nor geographical boundaries, it is not available to some not to others. The ability to laugh is not determined by ethnic group or religion, it is available for all.  The less inhibited a person, the more they can laugh out loud and lose themselves in their laughter.

So my friends

• Learn to not take yourselves too seriously,
• Learn to throw back your head and laugh!
• Laugh with your heart, body and soul,
• Laughter feels good and is good for you, and those around you!

So, Live, and Laugh Out Loud, as often as you need to!

*LOL – Laugh Out Loud!