Could You Use a Good Laugh About Now?

Illustration by Michael Glenwood Gibbs

August 2020 — It’s breathtaking to begin this month with the startling statistics of the COVID-19 pandemic. As I write this note (on Monday, July 20) I am reviewing a Washington Post update explaining that yesterday marked the 41st straight day that the seven-day average for new daily coronavirus infections in the United States trended upward. “Six months after the novel coronavirus reached America, more than 3.7 million cases have been detected, and at least 137,000 people have died,” the reporters explain. “The global death toll has surpassed 600,000, fueled in part by recent surges in states such as Texas, Florida and California.”

While it may be tough to haul a cherry to the top of this dramatic life-altering time in our lives — we are going to give it our best Inkandescent™ shot.

For guidance, we look to Craig Zablocki, one of the contributors to our August Book of the Month, Humor Me. In addition to that tome, he’s written Improv 101: Unleash Your Creative Spirit, and starred in several YouTube videos, including one of my favorites: The Joy of Not Taking Yourself So Darn Seriously!

Known as a nationally recognized goof ball, he shares his message of lightening up and reclaiming our natural spontaneity. “I do more than just tailor my programs to the audience,” shares single dad raising his son in Colorado. “I roll up my sleeves and work in the group. That’s where unexpected magic brings real change.”

Case in point: Craig’s Tips for Tough Times from Humor Me, page 140

“The best tips for tough times are to let go, be childlike, innocent, and vulnerable,” Craig writes. “Be open to the different emotions you might have and not worry if they’re appropriate or not.”

He suggests:

  • Take yourself lightly: Let go of the idea that you are the center of the universe, all important. Take what’s in your heart and soul seriously, but abandon the need to keep up an image, whether it’s acting cool, intelligent, strong, or invulnerable to feelings. Be real, without pretense, and if you were four years old again. Go to a playground and watch the children interact. There’s no posturing among young kids; they’re out to have a good time.
  • Laugh: Laugher can annihilate the ego, and believe me, that’s just what the ego needs.
  • Honor your emotions:
  • Laugh with others (versus at others):
  • Say “I don’t know:“

We thank Craig for his insight and wisdom (learn more about him at craigzablocki.com).

Get moving: Craig’s idea about taming the ego reminds me of a yogic exercise (called a Kriya) that I learned during my 200-hour Kundalini Yoga teacher training certification — the Ego Eradicator. Here’s a short video about this powerful Kriya. You’ll find instructions and other details about it here.

In upcoming issues of Inkandescent Health & Wellness we’ll share more about this ancient practice popularized by Yogi Bhajan who brought it to the US in the late 1960s. While there is much controversy circling around some of his personal decisions, at Inkandescent™ we are aspiring to look on the bright side and focus on the gifts that practicing Kundalini can bring to your life.

And that’s even more reason to read all of the articles in our August 2020 issue: The Power of Laughter

Here’s to finding that cherry to sit on the delicious beauty of our lives — come what may. Sending heartfelt wishes for health and wellness: mind, body, spirit and soul. — Hope Katz Gibbs, publisher, BeInkandescent.com