I’ve had the pleasure of leading a laughter yoga session, for a small group of women who temporarily reside at a women’s homeless shelter in downtown Seattle, a number of times. And it has always been a special thing.
Despite incredible life challenges, these women laugh. In fact they laugh and laugh and laugh almost uncontrollably. I’ve never seen anything like it anywhere else. They start laughing as I begin the laughter exercises and are truly unable to stop. Each laughter exercise has, or at least is meant to have, a definite beginning and a definite ending; with a much needed respite in between the hearty aerobic workout of laughter. Yet for these women there is hardly any pause.
There is a real intensity to it – an intensity of release, of joy, of losing oneself completely. It clearly shows how the higher the stress, the greater the need to laugh. Our bodies know this instinctively. Once we feel the release of stress through laughter, it’s sometimes hard to stop. It also clearly shows that intense life challenges need not kill off a joyful inner spirit.
Bravo to these special women!
Photo: stock.xchnge
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