Bayview residents:
all they need is a little
encouragement!
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Thursday, December 19, 2013
Mandela
Nelson Mandela - So many things to say about this man. I will simply comment on his smile. Twenty-seven years in prison and yet
his smile is such a joyful one.
Inspiration at its finest.
Photo:
Wikimedia
Friday, December 6, 2013
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Quote
“The Whole Art of Life is knowing how to transform anxiety
into laughter.” – Alan Watts
Photo: Stock.xchnge
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
Thursday, November 21, 2013
Beautiful You!
Laugh first thing in the morning, and you start your day
seeing how beautiful you are!
Photo: Stock.xchnge
Monday, October 28, 2013
Watching Mary Laugh
I’ve recently decided to end my public laughter club to
focus more on my paid laughter programs. I’ve been in this laughter business
for 12 years now and have been leading this particular laughter club for 7
years.
The public laughter club is my community service. It’s a lot of work to maintain it
–specifically in getting a steady stream of participants there every month; not
to mention the amount of effort it sometimes takes to get a small group of
newbies to laugh. I’m letting that
part of my life go…at least for awhile.
But I started to envision Mary in my mind. It brought not only a smile to my
spirit but a renewed understanding of why I do what I do. Ralph Waldo Emerson’s
words came to mind: “If only one life
has breathed easier because you have lived, this is to have succeeded.”
Mary came to my continuing ed class at Bastyr University
claiming that she could “do serious really well”. She came with an intent to bring more joy and laughter and
lightness to her life. She
participated with a sincere and steady commitment to use intentional laughter
to this end. And I watched
her slowly transform.
At our last laughter club I saw in her, for the first time,
a child-like lightness and contagious authenticity in her laugh. I felt a sparkle in her spirit and a
joy in her face that I hadn’t seen before. I saw her evolution – the fruits of her sincere labor. I saw that I’ve done my job well. And I remembered why I do what I
do.
I won’t be ending this work anytime soon.
Photo: Phinney Laughter Club
Saturday, October 19, 2013
Laughing with college students
Laughter yoga with college students:
I’m ready for them…they’re not buying it…until they’re doing
it!
Wednesday, October 2, 2013
Thursday, September 12, 2013
Laughter and Tragedy
I watched an old clip of the first Saturday Night Live
episode to air after September 11, 2001 (three weeks later) and mused on how
completely well done they did it.
It opened with Rudy Giuliani flanked by NYC Chief of Police
and NYC Chief of Firefighters with a crowd of personnel behind them. They were solemn and sincere and the
audience honored them profusely with a long stream of applause. Something everyone needed.
Major Giuliani spoke a chunk of heartfelt words, after which
Paul Simon sang a heartfelt song, with his sweet voice and poetic lyrics.
Then Executive Producer Lorne Michaels came on stage. Giuliani essentially told him the show
must go on as they are a NYC institution.
Only at this point did the comedy begin with Michaels asking Giuliani “Can we be funny?” To which Giuliani replies “Why start
now?” And everyone got to laugh.
People sometimes ask me “Is it ever inappropriate to
laugh?” This scenario is the
answer. Take whatever time is
needed to honor the tragedy, and then and only then, let the laughter begin;
for everyone needs the healing more than ever.
I attended my first program on Laughter Yoga just after
911. The leaders handled it
well. They spoke of the timing and
confessed that they considered cancelling the event but chose not to. It was something we all needed. For me it was tender timing to the
start of this vocational journey of bringing more laughter into the world.
Monday, September 2, 2013
Magic in a smile
“…the moment was rescued by his smile. There was magic in that single
expression, a transformational warmth that was impossible to resist…” author Kathleen McGowan
Photo: Stock.xchnge
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
Scrub Laughter
The opportunities to add laughter to your day are
everywhere….if you’re willing to see them.
My newest ritual, given me by my newest Naturopathic
physician, is a body scrub routine designed to stimulate the body’s natural
methods of daily detox. I am to do
this each morning before showering.
Quickly I realized it was the perfect compliment to my laughter routine
in the mirror each morning. So I
combine the two rituals – laughing while scrubing. It’s a gas!
Great way to start the day!
Thursday, August 15, 2013
Saturday, August 10, 2013
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
WC Fields Smile
“Smile first thing in the morning and get it over with.”
W.C. Fields
Photo: Wikimedia
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Awesome Seniors
John is one of the awesome seniors in a Laughter Yoga
program of mine recently. They
call him Jack and he calls his walker, Johnny Walker. Ha-ha!!
His laughing buddy Gerrie is a youthful 91. She’s in amazing shape with an
exuberantly positive attitude and
a laugh to match.
So I ask her , "What’s your trick to your awesome longevity?" Her answer: "music and laughter!" She’s
always sung in a choir and has always laughed a lot.
Thank You Gerrie.
Photo: Laughing
Buddies
Tuesday, July 23, 2013
The more you laugh...
The more you laugh, the more you find things funny. You don’t need a sense of humor to
laugh. Rather the more you laugh, the
more you develop a greater sense of humor.
It’s a truism.
For I laugh a lot and consequently find an amazing amount of things in
the world funny.
I sat on a massage chair for the first time at the salon
where my reflexologist practices.
I couldn’t stop howling.
Just couldn’t stop. It sent me into an endless stream of laughter. I
guess you could say it tickled my funny bone, massaged it….whatever. I just thought it was an hysterical
experience.
Because this was an upscale salon, and the laughter wasn’t congruent
with the rest of the ambiance, we had to turn the thing off or I would never
have stopped laughing…. Had I been
bolder, we would have left it on.
But the point is I’m the only one I know who howls with
laughter just by sitting in a massage chair. My laughter muscles are well-oiled…and often used.
Photo: Stock.xchnge
Monday, July 22, 2013
Yachta yachta
Saw a boat on the canal today named "Yachta Yachta". Funny! Laughter's everywhere if you take the time to see it.
Photo: Stock.xchnge
Thursday, July 18, 2013
Simple is Powerful
The simplest things in life are generally the most powerful. Like laughter!
Photo: Stock.xchnge
Monday, July 15, 2013
Open - Hearted Laughter
I connect most easily with those who laugh freely.
I know why – it’s because they are the
most open-hearted. This is
true, not only emotionally and metaphorically, but also literally.
Hearty laughter is excellent for the heart. It lowers blood pressure; increases
blood circulation; expands the lining of the arteries, taking stress off the heart; and strengthens
the heart in a cardiovascular workout.
There have been numerous significant studies linking heart - healthy
people with those who laugh easily.
Photo: Stock.xchnge
Friday, July 12, 2013
It's Healing to Laugh!
It’s healing to laugh!
I’ve said it many times.
Perhaps it’s time to say it again.
As I’m about to proceed to my appointment with my
reflexologist this morning, I quickly think to exchange my boring white socks
for the ones with bright colored dots.
For I know this will give us an added laugh – just before she goes to
work on my feet.
I chose my new ND for many good reasons, one of which is that I know how easily she laughs. For she was in my laughter class at Bastyr University last year. And indeed we spend not a small amount of our visits in boisterous laughter. It is so healing. The other stuff feels almost incidental. Though it’s also great healing stuff.
Laughter heals in so many ways: boosts the immune system,
stimulates the brain, gives a cardiovascular workout, shakes up the internal
organs, strengthens the lungs, reduces pain, stimulates and relaxes our
muscles, and last but not least, give us a grand emotional and spiritual boost!
Photo: Phinney Laughter Club - July edition!
Monday, July 8, 2013
Ted Talk: Laughing to the Future
Laughing to the future TED Talk with Hugh McClelland:
I do the laughter exercises a bit differently - more raucous, not
so controlling on the breathing, but sparking everyone to laugh with a
demo. More natural and playful, so
off they go, wild and wonderful.
But his info here is great!
And his enthusiasm!
“Babies laugh
before they can speak. But also
babies laugh before they have the ability to understand complex language, i.e.
before they could possibly get the joke." Aha! No need
for jokes to laugh – it’s a completely natural thing to laugh without any
cognitive understanding of why.
It’s simply joy!
“Laughter leaders remind people how to do the thing they
already know how to do – laugh.”
Monday, June 10, 2013
Laughter more tolerated now
I got “in trouble” once visiting a friend in the hospital –
for laughing and being too loud.
Granted it was Intensive Care, but he was out of crisis and me, well, I
was just being me. It was like
high school all over again. Getting
in trouble for laughing too much.
But my friend Edward, the high school teacher, says the world is a lot more tolerant of laughter in the classroom now. I’m happy to know it!
Photo: My
friend Gail, the compassionate clown, in our local hospital! She seeks to make them laugh – Nurse
Funnybones!
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
Saturday, June 1, 2013
Teasing
Teasing can be cruel or teasing can be loving. It’s all in the intent.
I played the violin when I was ten. Each week without fail,
as I waited for my elementary school doors to open, with violin case in hand, I was greeted by the 6th
grade teacher (who just happened to be male), as he teasingly called me “Machine Gun
Annie”. (Those days were innocent
enough that such a joke could be made.)
It was a tease thick with love and I ate it up every time.
On the other hand I can think of many teases during that time
from an older sibling that were laced with cruelty.
It’s all in the intent.
Photo: Stock.xchnge
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Laughter Yoga at Everett Community College
Brought some laughs to Everett Community College at
their annual Passport to Culture event.
My contribution: Laughter
Yoga from India. Most were
willing, some were tentative, most all of them were great young people willing
to experiment with “unconditional laughter”. Thank you Elke for the invitation!
Monday, May 27, 2013
Crusty Guys
We remember that which evokes strong feelings. I remember all those who made me laugh
hearty when I was young.
Today fond memories arose of those crusty old guys (old as a
relative term) I knew when I was a teenager and young adult. They worked at the gas station I
frequented annually to get my car inspected.
The scenario:
As I slowly cruised in their lot, they would come to a faux dramatic
halt, motion a faux dramatic Catholic sign-of-the-cross, and roll their eyes
before waving me in. It made me
howl every time. I loved those
guys!
We remember those who helped us to laugh! At least I have. With great fondness.
Photo: Stock.xchnge
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Tina's words
What a WILD bunch last week at the Laughter Club!!! Keep it up everyone and hope to see you
all again soon!
Tina’s words: “Teresa’s relaxed style put me at ease and
brought out some DEEP laughter and helped my light to shine a bit
brighter.” Thank you Tina!
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Laugher's High
Check out this video – Hooked on a Feeling!
Laughter creates the same “high” as addictive drugs. Addictive substances cause rushes of
dopamine in the nucleus accumbens sections of the brain. Fits of laughter do the same. Obviously with no horrific
side effects. Instead it’s a
“healthy high”.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
