And she laughed

Have you laughed today?
Did you know?

• You laugh an average of 17 times a day
• You’re 30 times more likely to laugh with other people than alone
• You often laugh not because something is funny, but to affirm, communicate, or express simple joy
• The New Testament has over 280 references to joy, laughter, etc.

I have silly laughs. Nervous laughs. Sarcastic laughs. Social laughs. Just-trying-to-get-along laughs. Silent laughs. Please-help-me-out laughs. And my favorite: Belly laughs.

I’ve been in trouble for laughing. Growing up, my sisters and I would sometimes hit a never-ending laughing binge at the dinner table, prompting Daddy to order us to stop being so silly (I never understood why).

Sarah laughed
When Sarah laughed about a potential pregnancy at 90 (I would have cried!), she got in trouble, too. “So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, ‘After I am worn out and my master is old, will I now have this pleasure?’” (Genesis 18:12 NIV).

When the Lord called her on it, she denied it, “Um, laughter? No laughing here!” (Genesis 18:15).

But the Lord was gracious to Sarah, and she gave birth to a son, naming him Isaac, meaning “he laughs.” Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me” (Genesis 21:6 NIV)

Contagious laughter
On Thursday, I was giving my mom a wheelchair ride, stopping by each painting on the wall to look at the colors and images. She’d occasionally say, “It’s pretty,” and sometimes reach out to finger the texture.

But when I stopped at a window and pointed out the trees, she laughed. I wasn’t sure why. But I laughed, too.

And I realized how odd it sounded to hear her laugh. Had it been that long since I’d heard her laugh? And how good it sounded now.

Laughter comes first
People living with Alzheimer’s typically lose skills in inverse order that they gained them as a baby—it’s called retrogenesis. With babies, laughter comes before talking. So even though my mom is losing her verbal skills, her laughter instinct should stick around awhile.

That makes me smile.

Later that night, I laughed with the ladies at her dinner table. Two were teasing each other mercilessly (in jest, I think), and because they were laughing, I could laugh, too.

I need to laugh more. I don’t need to let circumstances steal my joy.

You, too? As God brings laughter to us, and he will, let’s enjoy it!

* * *

Here’s an opportunity. Who can resist a baby’s laugh?