{"id":861,"date":"2012-06-01T08:00:50","date_gmt":"2012-06-01T00:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jeffangiegoh.com\/?p=861"},"modified":"2022-04-08T06:17:44","modified_gmt":"2022-04-07T22:17:44","slug":"33-humour-in-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.jeffangiegoh.com\/?p=861","title":{"rendered":"57. Put Humour into Your Life"},"content":{"rendered":"

He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision<\/span><\/strong>. [Psalm 2:4<\/span>]<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\"\"<\/a>\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Life throws things at you, some good, some bad.<\/span><\/p>\n

The cross that some people have to bear in life is a heavy one. Hemingway knew this well. Life breaks us all, he once wrote. But, he also helpfully pointed to the fact that some people grow at the broken places. God, evidently, has created us all with resilience and armed us with built-in shock-absorbing devices. One such device is humour and laughter. Scriptures puts it well for us. There is \u201ca season for everything, and a time for every matter under heaven\u201d. So there is “a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance” [Ecclesiastes 3:4] .<\/span><\/p>\n

Laughter, it is said, is the best medicine.<\/span><\/p>\n

There are many health benefits in humour and laughter, we are told.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the deadly serious business of teaching dogmatic theology, our former professor at Leuven, Belgium, Professor Hermen-Emiel Mertens, would extol the virtues of adding humour to theology. We laugh or smile at mimicries and we laugh at little children’s actions because they mimic adults.<\/span><\/p>\n

Maria Liu, our dear friend from Inner Mongolia, has seen more than the average share of ups and downs in her life and in the lives of loved ones. Now residing in the Netherlands where she is a professor of dentistry, Maria has sent us a marvelous slide show. It came in Chinese calligraphy set against an ever-changing beautiful backdrop \u2013 now of nature, now of interior d\u00e9cor, and now of colourful butterflies\u2026 Endlessly, pictures of breath-taking beauty change with each frame, to accompany and complement the calligraphy and to tickle your imagination.<\/span><\/p>\n

They are so beautiful that we decided to at least have the words translated and shared.<\/span><\/p>\n

Titled \u201cA Humorous Look at the Year of the Rabbit\u201d, the slide show features a new vision<\/em> of one centre, two basics, three forgets, four haves, five musts, and six must-nots.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a1 One Centre<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Let health be the one centre of all things.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a1 Two Basics<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Give all things a little bit more cavalier treatment.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

See all things a little bit less clearly.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a1 Three Forgets<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Forget your age.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Forget your past.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Forget your wounds.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a1 Four Haves<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Have a soul-mate.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Have a flourishing career.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Have a warm home.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

However weak or strong you may be, have someone who truly loves you.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a1 Five Musts<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

You must sing.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

You must dance.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

You must laugh.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

You must be cavalier.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

You must be accommodating.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u25a1 Six Must-Nots<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

You must not eat only when you are hungry.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

You must not drink only when you are thirsty.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

You must not sleep only when you are sleepy.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

You must not rest only when you are tired.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

You must not get a medical check-up only when you are sick.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

You must not regret only when you are old.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

So go tell your loved ones now, to mind their physical health as well as their inner well being.<\/span><\/p>\n

For inner health, let your life be filled with laughter, fun and humour.<\/span><\/p>\n

A humorous person teases out laughter, banishes your sorrow, lightens your mood, and eases the pressure of competitive living.<\/span><\/p>\n

Health benefits in humour and laughter?<\/span><\/p>\n

Without humour, life is like a flowerless spring.<\/span><\/p>\n

The secret source of humour is laughter, not sorrow and pain. So long as we are still alive, we must maintain humour.<\/span><\/p>\n

So try this little story for humour.<\/span><\/p>\n