When life gives you lemons, laugh!

www.teacherjenniferan.com

One of my favorite things about traveling is the people I meet along the way. One evening in Shi'an, Emily and I decided to spend our evening in the hostel and it was there I met our roommate Matt from England. He was going through what he called a "mid-life crisis" so he was spending a month in China to "find himself".

I remember feeling his hurt and sadness but also feeling excited for him and the opportunity he had to redefine who he was and create the life he truly wanted. His pain was forcing him to step outside of his normal routine, look inside himself and consciously decide what he desired to do and create in life. 

Some people think Laughter Yoga is a way of escaping life or pretending the pain isn't there, but it's not. Life happens, the human experience itself implies pain, loss and suffering but how we choose respond to each situation is where our freedom lies. The body doesn't know the difference between "real" and "fake" laughter, by choosing to laugh, you're making a conscious choice to rewire neural pathways and release "feel good" chemicals in the body. You are actually able to create an environment in the body conducive to healing by making the decision to laugh despite outer circumstances.