December 12: Day 165

STONE ELEVEN CONTINUED
 
Laugh: I choose laughter as the notes of my song. This temporal life is a journey to be enjoyed. I look for the comedy in situations, and I learn to laugh at my own comedy of errors.
 
Instruction: Consider the shortness of life.
If circumstances were to physically pull us and toss in different directions without much notice and do so while we were traveling at a high rate of speed, we would find it so terrifying that we might have a heart attack. If we were experiencing a popular roller coaster at an amusement park, we would understand what we were getting ourselves into, and most of those who paid their money and waited in line would be exhilarated by the ride. Most roller coaster enthusiasts want to go as fast as possible, as high as possible, and be looped, spun, and tossed around as much as possible. They might yell, scream, and even beg for the ride to stop so they can get off, but once the ride is over, the majority will be thrilled at the rush and many will laugh at themselves and at their friends for the antics they displayed while they were on the ride.

Stone Eleven reminds us that this temporal life is a journey to be enjoyed, much like the roller coaster at the amusement park. We are here for a short time, and what we do with our time on earth is up to us. We can enjoy it, or, like some who realize the ride was more frightening than fun, we can beg for it to end. Even if we were born into or find ourselves in truly grueling situations that most people would agree are extreme, and this does happen to some people, still, take every opportunity that you can find to laugh even if your opportunity may not be as plentiful as those people in less extreme situations. I have no doubt that when we look back at our lives from the other side of the grave, we will recall the roughest, bumpiest, scariest parts of our lives, and we will laugh at what once felt like an unbearable experience. Whoa, that one almost did me in. I didn’t think I’d come out of that situation with my sanity. We do make it through, and the ride will one day be over. When we consider the shortness of our lives, we can make a determined decision to enjoy the twists and turns, to laugh as much as possible, and to loosen up and not take ourselves, or our problems, too seriously.

For those today who are experiencing great pain in their life, this Stone might feel useless and perhaps even insulting as if you have been asked to empty the oceans one teacup at a time. There are times in life when there are no easy solutions.

Today’s Assignment is to take a step back, look at the situation from a higher perspective, and open to the possibility that this dark roller coaster ride might actually come to an end one day and that — maybe, just maybe — before long you might be able to laugh once more. That is the goal, and sometimes it can also work as part of the solution.