- I find it a useful daily practice not to take myself too seriously.
- An admirer asked G.K Chesterton, “How can angles fly?” to which he replied, “because they take themselves lightly.”
There are a number of immediate benefits to taking ourselves lightly:
- Immediately restores dynamic balance.
- Allows us to tolerate disappointments, reverses, and ultimately the poignant transience of life.
- As Victor Frankl observed, “Humor is one of the soul’s weapons in the fight for self-preservation.”
AUDIO ON HUMOR
References:
- In many traditions throughout the world, kings kept fools in court as dear companions to hold a mirror to their own tragic follies they might otherwise forget. Will Somers was the beloved Court Fool to Henry VIII; see also King Lear’s Fool in Shakespeare’s play.
- The most powerful juxtaposition of pathos and humor I know is Charles Dicken’s Plea for a Hospital for Sick Children