I know that we all “know” in theory that laughter is pretty much a cure-all and when times get tough and stressful—laughter can be the very best medicine indeed. As a single parent, however, we might be tempted to take everything very seriously—after all, a great deal is often riding on our shoulders. But there are those times when things can get so kooky and out of whack that the only sane thing we really can do…is laugh.
Life can be pretty darn hilarious and life with children can be hilarious on a fairly regular basis—between the silly sayings, irony, mis-speak, and sheer ludicrousness of stuff that goes down in the average family, how can you not find something to laugh about? Early this week, I watched with annoyance as our newest family-member, a 10-week old wild kitten actually leapt into a bowl of Christmas balls sending them spraying all over the living room. This came the day after he got himself stuck and tangled in the Christmas tree—paws wrapped up in draped beads and legs hanging over a couple of bending branches. Meanwhile, one of my children told me that she “didn’t really need anything for Christmas” and then proceeded to name off a dozen must-have items which would cost half my annual salary. Another child told me “lovingly” on Sunday that I wasn’t “the unhealthy kind of overweight—it looks good on you” she added with a pat on my shoulder.
The chaos can be stressful—the lack of money, order, and good behavior can make a person feel like she would rather run away from home than keep plugging away in the land of single parenthood. But, the chaos can also be quite hilarious if we are able to make a slight shift in our thought process. After all, if we can’t laugh when things get utterly ridiculous, what CAN we do?!
Also: Laughing Through the Challenging Times
Learning to Laugh at Ourselves
When You Shouldn’t Laugh at Your Child’s Distracting Antics