I’ve always admired those with a good sense of humor. Being able to laugh, and especially being able to laugh at yourself is a remarkable talent that is often overlooked. Not everybody has this talent! Without the ability to laugh, navigating this life can quickly become a monstrous grind with many trips to the shrink. In my experience, a good sense of humor often comes bundled with a sunny disposition and an optimistic outlook on life. It’s also extremely contagious, can disarm a tense situation, and has the ability to brighten a person’s sole more than most of us realize.
Just think about the people you love to be around… do they have a good sense of humor? I’m grateful that my life is filled with people who enjoy a good laugh… often at their own expense. Both of my parents, my brother, and my wife… all of them are blessed with their own unique sense of humor… and I’ve had many laugh-out-loud moments with each of them. I’m also lucky to have had some hilarious friends over the years. One time, during a more difficult stage of my life about 10 years ago, I went to the theater to see the hilarious movie Meet the Parents with my friend Scott Mills (who has a tremendous sense of humor and one of the most contagious laughs of anyone on this planet earth). Watching Ben Still and Robert Deniro was funny enough… but watching it with Scott supercharged every line and every laugh in that movie. I didn’t stop laughing for a week… and just thinking about it still brings a smile to my face.
When it comes to comedy… sometimes you have to realize when you’re a part of it…. or at least when you witness it happening in front of your eyes. That was the case recently at our home when an unfortunate incident spun into a truly laughable story.
Edna Catchpole is a kind elderly lady that lives just down the street. Just a few days ago she was walking her Shitzu around the block… when, just as she was passing by our home, she stumbled badly and hit her face on the ground. Bleeding badly, she slowly made her way to the curb when someone driving down the road noticed her and called 911. Turns out, Edna wasn’t injured too badly. She had some facial lacerations, and injured her wrist during the fall… but (fortunately) she is on the quick path towards a full recovery… and her little Shitzu “Maggie” barked away completely unscathed.
There were, however, a few tense moments when my wife Laura heard the fire truck pull up and ran out to the front yard. As Laura rushed out to see what the commotion was all about, she recognized Edna covered in blood and being helped by the emergency crew. The whole thing happened so fast… but as Edna recognized Laura at the scene, she desperately yelled out to call her home teacher! When she arrived at the hospital, even in her precarious situation, she did the same- asked for her home teacher by name. According to a friend of mine, who arrived on the scene later, the doctors and emergency workers were very confused and even a bit apprehensive. At one point there was some speculation as to whether or not Edna was “all there” and the doctors performed a MRI on Edna just to make sure.
Now Edna’s home teacher, is really friendly guy, and has been helping Edna for years. We’ve known him for a while and have a lot of respect for him – he’s very pleasant, always eager to help, and was even a member of our bishopric at one time. Eventually somebody got a hold of him – and he made his way down to the hospital later on that evening.
So what’s the humor? Well, Edna’s home teacher is… a local celebrity of sorts. Just imagine for a moment… what those emergency crew workers must have thought to themselves, as Edna… a small elderly lady…. bleeding profusely… desperately yelled out….” CALL CRAIG SWAPP! CALL CRAIG SWAPP”!