As there is much happening in the world today to steal our joy, I recently pondered on the thought of things that make me smile. Spending time with friends was one thought that came to my mind, and I remembered this story.
Once I took a trip to the beach to visit a friend. The second night I was there, we went out to eat at a nice restaurant which was on the waterfront. The hostess told us the wait would be an hour, so we walked outside to the boat dock area to view the boats and enjoy the nice weather. The sun was setting and I had my camera, so I began snapping pictures of the beauty surrounding me. After strolling around for a while, we went back into the restaurant to wait on our seat. As we walked through the restaurant, my friend leaned over and said something to me. I couldn’t hear her due to the music, so I leaned in and asked what she had said. She pointed to her shoes. She had on sandals with two inch heels. I looked down and saw one of the shoes had a split in the heel. The more we walked, the worse it got until it finally started falling apart right in the restaurant. As she expressed her embarrassment, she began to modify her walk as to take the pressure off the foot in which the shoe was disintegrating by the second. We finally made it to the front of the restaurant and walked out towards the car in hopes there was another pair of shoes for her to wear. I turned around and looked behind us only to see a spontaneous trail of shoe rubber lying on the pavement. It looked as if she was leaving a Hansel and Gretel trail. We began laughing until we were in belly laugh mode. As we wiped our tears that came from this unexpected moment, she stated “I still rocked those shoes with dignity”, the laughter started again. There were other people in the parking lot which thought for sure we had too much to drink that night. Little did they know it was just two sober friends having a good stress-releasing belly laugh!
When life throws you a curve, find a friend to spend some time with; you never know what unexpected joy may be in store!
Laughter is Good Like A Medicine
We all like a good laugh, as it tends to put us in a better mood. Studies have shown laughter has many medical benefits as well. It has been proven to reduce stress and relieve tension as endorphins are released into the blood stream. This stimulates circulation and relaxes the muscles. Deep belly laughter has also been proven to boost the immune system, which allows us to be healthier. It has also been proven to help prevent heart disease. Laughter puts us in a more positive frame-of-mind, which in turn causes us to feel better about ourselves and become more outgoing. This improves our chances of meeting new friends and having the opportunity to laugh together.
Find someone today to have a good belly laugh with; it could change your perspective on life!
