Why is humour so important in every aspect of someone's life? I asked myself this question very recently, and I have noticed that I am closer to men and women that can make me laugh, rather than folks who lack the ability to. My boyfriend (I'll call him A) makes me laugh so much whenever we're together. It doesn't matter what we talk about, or if I'm in a bad mood. He always has this certain charm to himself, and I find myself laughing to the things he says that are, obviously, meant as jokes. He always cheers me up if I'm feeling down.
If someone lives without humour, I think, they will live in misery. Laughing and smiling tells someone you are happy, and if you are happy, chances are that they will be happy too. If you aren't happy, they might try and console you, or try and make you laugh to cheer you up. But if you aren't able to laugh, you aren't going to be able to cheer up unless you find something else that makes you happy, which is something like a hobby, but that's another story altogether.
The point is, if you live without laughter you live without happiness. I say this because I have had personal experience. I went a week or two without laughing, sometimes even smiling, and I began to gradually feel myself slipping into the blues. When I started laughing again, I felt happy. It's because your brain processes smile and laugh as happy. If you go too long without it, your brain will begin to think that you're not smiling for a reason, that you must be upset. Your brain is tricked this way, and in response to such a thing, it adapts and makes you sad because you have gone too long without laughter. Perhaps, if you smile (even if you are sad), eventually, your brain will think you are happy, and adapt to match your smile. (Thank you so much S for this nice piece of advice. It really works.)
Laughter has always helped people bond. It is more contagious than a yawn, or a sneeze or cough or anything else. As soon as someone starts laughing, I've noticed that other people begin to laugh as well. It creates this invisible bond string, and helps people communicate better. Whenever I go to my sister's home, if I start laughing for no apparent reason (if you're curious about the reason, it's because it's too quiet and I get nervous, but sometimes it's because I'm still laughing at something funny I saw), my sister will start laughing too or smile. Even a smile is great.
It also has health benefits. Laughter can relax your muscles, decreases blood pressure, improves the function of blood vessels and increases blood flow, decreases stress, and in turn boosts the functionality of the immune system. It also releases endorphins into your body, a chemical that reduces pain and affects emotions. If you watch the movie, Patch Adams (starring Robin Williams) this is proved. It's based on a true story, and this doctor, Hunter Adams, is stationed in West Virginia. He believes that laughter is the best medicine, and it is.
I believe that so many people look for laughter in their relationships because they know this, and there are so many more benefits emotionally and physically. I'm positive that not all benefits have been found yet, but this much is for certain - laughter cures. And that applies to everything. Laughter dissolves distressing emotions, and nobody wants those. That's why so many people look for someone who can make them laugh. That's why we all enjoy a good laugh, and that's why I enjoy one too. I don't know why, but if I didn't have the sense of humour that he does, I don't think I'd have fallen in love with him in the first place. There's just something special about someone who has the ability to make you laugh. It strengthened my bond with A, and laughter has always strengthened the bond of everyone, everywhere. Love and friendship, I think, roots from laughter. Laughter, I think, is the beginning of all relationships. Humourlessness is the end of them.
And I should know. I met my best friend, MD, almost three years ago. We started laughing gradually (at a rather fast pace, actually). Laughing around her was easy, it was fun. Gradually, we started to stop laughing, and fights began to start. We both thought our friendship was over. The laughing had stopped, and that's what almost ended it. When we started humouring each other again (gradually again), the rocky part had passed and we never passed it again. Although I think we were pretty close when we met, we developed a deep, mutual bond that's forever nourished by laughter and our own personal experiences. We never stopped laughing over our own stupidity and jokes ever again after that, and I think our relationship will be going again for many more years to come. I'll never find anyone else to rival her as my best friend, for certain.
You know, I think we still argue today over whether we actually thought it was over or not when we passed over those rocky hills. I`ve completely forgotten what we fought over now, and that`s probably a good thing.
So, let's all fight the most dangerous disease of them all - humourlessness - and laugh a little. =D (Horrible smiley definitely intended to make this ending seem more light-hearted than it is, hah.)