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11:10 AM: The chime
of the telephone stopped me as I was heading out the door
for a luncheon meeting.
“This
is Marilyn, how may I help you?”
“Marilyn, I
just landed a telephone interview for an article. It’s
in less than an hour. I need your help.”
It was a colleague
and friend. Her tone said “This is an emergency.”
What about you? Have
you ever received an urgent request for help at a less than
opportune moment? A call for kindness may
have been paying you a visit.
In laughter clubs,
one of the ways we encourage
others to build a positive way of life and prevent hardening
of the attitudes is to find ways to help make another person’s
life a little easier, to extend an act of kindness.
The practice
of kindness has many positive effects. Consider
these:
• Kindness
creates healthy relationships by reducing impatient, insensitive
habits that hurt or offend others. For example,
kindness is demonstrated when we choose to resist the urge
to honk at an inconsiderate driver or flip an unflattering
hand signal to point out that they are wrong.
• Kindness
demonstrates caring and compassion. It speaks in
a language everyone can understand. Mark Twain said, “Kindness
is a language which the deaf can hear and the blind can
read.”
What about that urgent
plea for help at 11:10 AM?
4:35 PM. The message
light was blinking on my answering machine when I walked
in the door.
“Hi, Marilyn.
We just passed each other
on the road. I returned your recorder. The interview went
great! Thanks so-o-o-o much for your help. By
the way, your front yard looks beautiful. The flowers look
happy.”
Maybe your act of
kindness can help someone see happiness in flowers, too.
Sound ridiculous? Then, think of it this way: Seeds
of kindness blossom into flowers of gratitude, and that’s
bound to increase your desire to laugh.
I suggest laughing “jest” for the laugh of it
at Uplifting Spirit Laughter Club, held each month on the
second and fourth Friday night from 7:00–8:00 PM.
It’s free. It’s open to the public. Everyone
is welcome. Go to www.unityingreensboro.org for details.
C’mon, Let’s Laugh!
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Marilyn
Sprague-Smith,
M.Ed.,
is
an
award-winning
consultant,
trainer,
author,
professional
speaker,
and
certified
laughter
leader.
Through
her
consulting
and
training
firm
Miracles
&
Magic,
she
partners
with
individuals
and
organizations
seeking
a
catalyst
for
long-term
positive
change.
She
is
one
of
only
six
people
in
the
world
authorized
by
The
World
Laughter
Tour
to
deliver
laughter
leader
certification
training.
As
a
frequent
guest
on
National
Public
Radio’s
WFDD
88.5
FM
Real
People.
Real
Stories.
www.wfdd.org,
she
shares
true
stories
about
the
magic
of
laughter
and
the
sparkle
it
brings
to
relationships.