Heather and I disagree, playfully, on how learning and laughing intersect with our rubric. I tend to learn first, then laugh at myself, while Heather does it the other way. The two are entwined for us, any way you slice it, though.
About a week ago, I had a learning experience I shouldn't have needed. I didn't realize how funny it was until I was telling Heather about it and she just kept laughing about every other sentence. As I'm listening to her laugh, I'm realizing that the whole experience taught me several things, and that it was all very funny. The lesson hadn't really hit home until I laughed about it.
My mother-in-law came to visit that weekend, and I should, after almost twenty years of dealing with her, know better than to expect things to run on time or smoothly. She's late for everything and has no qualms about disrupting other people's plans if she finds something she would rather do. I had planned to get some work done on this project while she was in the Bay Area. I knew it was likely she would not cooperate, but I mentally planned all of it out anyhow. When she messed up my perfect schedule, I was a little irritated, but not surprised.
Telling Heather about this was an a adventure in itself. Between my dawning realization at what I had done and said and grasping just how silly it was, I was processing my learning experience and giggling at the same time. In between guffaws, she said, "Wait, wait. Mandy. Why would you do that?" The answer isn't pretty; I don't want to deal with my mother-in-law so I packed my mental schedule with things to do to avoid dealing with her. Worse, I knew it wouldn't work and did it anyhow. Heather loves to catch me in these moments because mine are less frequent but usually much bigger than hers, which means they also provide much more comedy.
Learning and laughing is important to creating a happier life. Laughter soothes the stings of life lessons, it helps us put things in perspective (without making us hurt), and it makes our stories so much more interesting by taking away their power to cloud our judgement.
About a week ago, I had a learning experience I shouldn't have needed. I didn't realize how funny it was until I was telling Heather about it and she just kept laughing about every other sentence. As I'm listening to her laugh, I'm realizing that the whole experience taught me several things, and that it was all very funny. The lesson hadn't really hit home until I laughed about it.
My mother-in-law came to visit that weekend, and I should, after almost twenty years of dealing with her, know better than to expect things to run on time or smoothly. She's late for everything and has no qualms about disrupting other people's plans if she finds something she would rather do. I had planned to get some work done on this project while she was in the Bay Area. I knew it was likely she would not cooperate, but I mentally planned all of it out anyhow. When she messed up my perfect schedule, I was a little irritated, but not surprised.
Telling Heather about this was an a adventure in itself. Between my dawning realization at what I had done and said and grasping just how silly it was, I was processing my learning experience and giggling at the same time. In between guffaws, she said, "Wait, wait. Mandy. Why would you do that?" The answer isn't pretty; I don't want to deal with my mother-in-law so I packed my mental schedule with things to do to avoid dealing with her. Worse, I knew it wouldn't work and did it anyhow. Heather loves to catch me in these moments because mine are less frequent but usually much bigger than hers, which means they also provide much more comedy.
Learning and laughing is important to creating a happier life. Laughter soothes the stings of life lessons, it helps us put things in perspective (without making us hurt), and it makes our stories so much more interesting by taking away their power to cloud our judgement.
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