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A spiritual comment and prayer to start the day with Bishop Helen-Ann Hartley

Good morning.

When was the last time you laughed, I mean really laughed? In these days of anxiety and concern, it’s been interesting to note those moments of humour that pop up on a daily basis. There are plenty opportunities it seems, to raise a smile or have a proper laugh-out-loud experience. Today as it happens, is ‘International Moment of Laughter Day’, so I wonder what it might be that will make me laugh today?

Watching funny clips shared on social media, and family pets getting in the way of video-conference conversations, are just a couple of examples of things that feature in an average day of this ‘new normal’ I find myself in, and I know I’m not alone in that regard. I was recently overseeing what is usually quite a solemn and serious process via video-conference, when a colleague’s cat suddenly appeared, its body pressed up against the camera filling the entire screen with fur. Perhaps naturally, our response was laughter (albeit expressed in a somewhat modest way). It lifted the mood, and everyone smiled. We regained composure and continued, but the unexpected intervention of a feline companion stayed with us.

A few years ago, a study found that babies laugh on average 300 times a day, whereas adults laugh only 20 times. Now I’m not encouraging laughing purely for the sake of it, rather it’s a reminder not to take myself too seriously, and perhaps to see my own context today in a lighter way. That might be a challenge, but I’ll give it a go.

God who in Jesus Christ knew and experienced human emotion, we give thanks for all that lifts our souls. For comedians and performers who inspire laughter and delight in life, especially in this period of lockdown, we give you thanks this day.

Amen.