Have you ever taken a walk on the wild side where nature rocks your sensibility between the lull of its serenity and the possible danger of your vulnerability?
Many years ago, a friend and I went on a guided walk through the African bush. The bliss of unadulterated nature enveloped us. Everything felt so real, so peaceful, an organic sensory feast. And then, as we rounded a blind bend, there she stood in all her power and glory, awe-inspiring and terrifying – a rhinoceros with her calf close at her side. Standing downwind of us made her presence all the more threatening, equipped as rhinos are with a strong sense of smell.
Our game ranger swiftly instructed the two of us to climb a nearby tree. I would have hesitated to call it a fully-fledged tree, however, anything offering some form of elevation had to be appreciated. In no time my friend was perched on a branch with me trying to mimic the superwoman act behind her. And that’s when the actual subject of this essay happened – laughter! Of all the times and places to be completely incapacitated by eruptions of laughter, I ‘chose’ mid-tree trunk, just short of reaching a branch, while mama rhino was scuffing the ground in preparation to charge. My friend had started laughing too, empathetic panic eroding her senses; while our guide, in his haste, dropped the bullets from his rifle - a formality carried for those last resort measures should it come to that.
I made a feeble ‘half on the branch, half not’ effort, fully convinced that my fate as a kebab on that far-reaching horn was sealed. And then she charged. Thundering past us, her little one in tow, we felt the gust of wind as she passed by, fully realising how close a shave it had been.
What I didn’t understand at the time, was how I could have been so helplessly deposited at the mercy of mirth in such a life-threatening situation. As it turns out, a high level of nervous energy can trigger a kind of release valve in the form of laughter. Research in humour labels this as the Relief Theory. It can also catch you during those times, when giggles are deemed to be most inappropriate.
But the theme that we most commonly associate with humour is that of the Incongruity Theory where the outcome (punchline) is different from the anticipated one. And there is humour that falls under the Superiority Theory – deriving a sense of self-enhancement from the misfortunes of others.
Provided humour is not aggressive (mocking others) or self-defeating (encouraging jokes that deprecate the self), it has been recognised as overwhelmingly beneficial for not only emotional and mental well-being but for physical health too.
Besides burning calories from the noticeable lurching boogie of the diaphragm and associated muscles, laughter sets biological processes in motion that help to improve the immune system, reduce blood pressure and improve blood circulation. It also reduces inflammation and pain, not to mention the common day plague of stress.
In a study on anxiety, conducted on a group of women, the effects of humour, music and aerobic exercise were compared. Humour emerged with the highest beneficial effect.
The well-established value underlying this very human property should surely encourage drives at increasing its expansion in daily living and thereby pre-empt, if not prevent, the erosion of health by negative and fearful influences.
But how can we can we slip a humorous filter over our perception, naturally easing ourselves into more of that diaphragmatic boogie?
Besides the usual advice of watching more comedy clips and movies, or reading humorous books, some research advises keeping a humour journal, in which you record the amusing incidents of your day and thereby underline humour in real time. Returning your awareness to the humour that you have experienced will strengthen your appreciation for its value and help to keep the portal for that magic open.
Laughter is very contagious, so spending more time around funny people will have a positive rub off effect, especially if you allow yourself to express your own style and sense of humour, free from the dictates of others or convention.
Young children provide enough evidence that laughter is as natural as crying. As they feel, so they are, free from the adult editorial gag, with laughter ever ready to spontaneously burst through their communicative expression.
The unwritten rules of acceptable adult socialisation do not actually stipulate the boundaries of humour. But they do, on the other hand, align seriousness with importance, and therefore by implication, undervalue humour, if not trivialise it. Yet research has shown that a high scoring sense of humour in individuals improves self-esteem and performance. As the successful antidote to tension, it makes sense that the relaxed state of laughter would unshackle curiosity, open the mind, and improve receptivity, learning and creativity.
And, dare I add the obvious, that laughter also just feels so good. There’s nothing quite like the aftermath sensation of a heartily good belly laugh.
So, in this vein, perhaps we need to look within for answers on how to increase humour and laughter in our lives. Some introspection and reflection may shed light on whether we tend to clamp down on our inner childlike glee and the inherent giggles that that inner child would otherwise sprinkle on life.
Predictability, routine, and risk-free optionality can narrow the opportunities for laughter, whereas their alternatives increase them by introducing variety and strengthening the imagination.
“You cannot be spontaneous within reason.” ~ Alan Watts
Quirky, off-the-wall, goofing around, childlike playfulness, even being silly - all tend to make it impossible for seriousness to monopolise our focus. Even just assuming the facial expressions and bodily postures of that behaviour can assert fun in the mind, via the neuronal feedback loop from muscles to brain. Exaggerated gestures tend to announce play-time to the mind, inviting a free-spirited engagement in life. This would counter-balance any tendency to adopt seriousness as your default mode and thereby deprive yourself of many more laughs.
“I don’t take life seriously; I take serious moments in life seriously.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
The trigger for laughter may mature as we get older, but the propensity for laughter is always there, and it should never become the sacrificial lamb on the altar of adulthood.
Thank you for this reminder! Thank you for this beautifully written article, which also made me laugh! You really captured the scenes and moments so well that I had a very vivid movie projecting in my head. A good piece of writing like this is also a great reminder of how potent we are as creators, in our imagination.
A delightful read I could just imagine the scene and cannot stop laughing made my day