Laughter, it's infectious

Laughter is quite an amazing thing when you actually think about it. There aren’t many things in life that I can think of that are as infectious as laughter. Think about it. You’re with a bunch of friends watching a movie and one of you laughs. Even if that part of the movie wasn’t funny it is still hard not to laugh. Everyone laughs and it is a great thing that brings everyone together. No matter what you’re going through, laughter will be good for you.

In my opinion, a baby’s first laugh is one of the most beautiful sounds to hear. How can you not smile when you hear that? It’s something that will be part of them for the rest of their life, and it’s a part of them that shows happiness. No matter how horrible your day is going it is almost impossible not to at least smile when a baby laughs. Baby’s laughs are heartwarming and unforgettable. Even in Peter Pan you can see that a baby’s laugh is an amazing thing. The author of Peter Pan, J.M. Barrie, writes, “When the first baby laughed for the first time, his laugh broke into a million pieces, and they all went skipping about. That was the beginning of fairies.”

When anyone around me laughs I often have a smile on my face or I laugh. Usually it isn’t even because the joke or whatever they are laughing at is funny; it’s more likely because their laugh makes me laugh. I love being around people when they’re happy, and especially if that includes laughing together. More often than not, if people aren’t laughing and don’t seem to be having fun I try to be my weird self and make people laugh. The most fun I can have isn’t going out to the movies with my friends; it is hanging out talking and laughing at things that only we think are funny.

It can be understood by anyone. They say that music is a universal language which is quite obvious, but the way I see it laughter is the most distinct universal language. No matter what language you speak you can understand laughing. Everyone associates laughter with happiness and everyone enjoys being happy, so therefore everyone enjoys laughter. And why wouldn’t you enjoy it?

If your friend is feeling down, or even someone that you just notice doesn’t look too happy or looks upset, try to make them laugh. Not only is laughter infectious, but it is the best medicine. When I’m upset and people make me laugh it automatically makes me feel a little bit better. Don’t ever underestimate the power of your own laughter. Once you start laughing it’s usually hard to stop and frankly you shouldn’t try to stop because it is helping you deal with whatever you’re going through. Whenever you’re down call some friends and ask them to hang out. I know that if I’m not too happy with something that I have no control over I tend to hang out with my friends and just have fun laughing and doing dumb stuff.

No matter who you are or what you’re going through laughter is good for you. And the first step before laughter is smiling. It’s the little things in life that make us smile and this brings me back to a baby’s laughter. When you’re down think of something that makes you smile every time you hear it or see it. For me that is my godson’s first laugh. My day could be long and boring, but if I listen to that one time it can change my whole mood around. Find yours, it’s worth it. I will leave you with this; it takes about 45 muscles to frown and only 17 to smile. Smile everyone, and I hope that that smile turns into laughter.

-Eric Proulx