isn’t that something…
I’ve taken to a comfort program. I don’t really consume much media but when I do… it becomes part of me. When I was in high school I owned a TV VCR combination console. It was amazing.
I watched Polly, Patch Adams, The Princess Bride, Pokemon 2000, Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers, and My Neighbor Totoro on repeat.
The other things I would watch were Gilmore Girls, The Food Network, and, last but not least, Whose Line Is It Anyway?
I love Whose Line. I don’t know what your favorite thing to do is but mine is to laugh.
I stayed up so late watching that show and I didn’t know anyone else who liked watching it. It’s like it was mine alone and no one else existed but me, those four comedians, and the host. Yes, there was always a live audience but they didn’t count to me.
Laughter is the best medicine. Laughter usually means joy. Joy and happiness are interchangeable. Being happy is hard to do on your own.
But that’s what my comfort program helps me do: laugh.
I’ve been watching The Kevin Langue Show on YouTube and I literally laugh out loud every other minute. It’s basically the same as Whose Line but more current and the comedians and host are my age. It feels way more relevant than being a 16 year old girl watching middle aged men.
Okay enough about my comfort show.
I’m telling you about this because, in watching this show, I have learned that anything can be funny. But only if you make it funny. Only if you choose to smile. Only if you open yourself up to laughter.
Whenever I encountered an angry Atlanta driver, I used to, in turn, become upset. Now, it makes me laugh. I feel a little crazy for laughing sometimes but ultimately, it feels so much better to jokingly say “Now.. what did we accomplish?” than to just be equally or more angry.
Today, on my hike, this little boy was crossing the river while his mom watched. He seemed scared and his mom was a little nervous.
She said “Be careful…”.
He yelled “I’m in crocs!!”.
I cut into their conversation “But they’re in sport mode!”.
The mom chuckled “Exactly”.
Hyper-focused, I’m not sure if he heard me but his mom got a little less stressed. I followed him across the river and everything was chill.
It doesn’t even have to be a lot. A small shift of perspective can really change everything.
I went back and deep dived into my old high school tumblr blog. I found pictures of me and my friend Ozi in art class and at an art festival. I miss them so much. I had even forgotten I posted those pictures.
High school seems so long ago but I feel like I was just hanging out with them in a random TJMaxx, hugging pillows to test softness.
They were always funny but their intelligence outweighed their humor. After securing Valedictorian, they went to Princeton and were in Grad School.
They passed away in 2019 right before I moved to Atlanta. I don’t know what happened. But I still carry every memory of them with me. Every joyful moment. I like to think as I move forward in life, I carry Ozi with me. Every time I win, so do they.
It’s wild to see how I’ve changed (and how I haven’t).
I’m proud of how far I’ve come…but there’s more to go. (:
Always more.
I hope you know there’s more for you, too.
Love you bunches,
Perlizbeth
