Snorkel Man

"The human race has only one really effective weapon and that is laughter."
Mark Twain

My iPod broke last month and walking on the treadmill hasn't been the same since. When I arrived at the gym this morning I found I had no socks. No iPod, no socks and an extra long to-do list for the day. I was beginning to feel grumpy. I decided to put off my workout until this afternoon and instead made my way over to Starbucks to write this article.

When I stepped out of the car I realized my laptop was still waiting for me at home. I had forgotten to grab it when I hurried out the door and headed to town. Grrr - now my grumpiness was taking hold.

Heading back toward my house I hit road construction and delayed traffic. I decided to use my time "wisely" to tackle an errand and found myself on hold with the phone company- again. Minor grumpiness became major frustration and down right annoyance!

And then a funny image popped into my mind. Last week I was driving through town with a friend and we were stopped at a crosswalk in the heart of town. There crossing the street was a man wearing full snorkel gear. We looked at each other, shook our heads and laughed. Only in Kona we agreed. This is one wacky town.

Just recalling this event brought a smile to my face. Actually I found myself laughing out loud and my grumpy mood dissipated quickly replaced with one amusing memory.

Here is the interesting thing. Just prior to the snorkel man memory surfacing something important had been happening. Here is what was going on in my mind. I was having a conversation with myself that went something like this:

"I don't like feeling frustrated for long. This frustration is sticking around longer than I want it to. I wonder what I might do to shift my own mood right now?"

And Bingo - Snorkel man appeared in my mind.

Wonder is a great skill to develop. The act of wondering opens us to worlds beyond this world. And let's not forget that humor is a great way to shift any negative mood. When it happens spontaneously - like it did for me today- it feels like a tickle from the angels. If you are ticklish like I am you know you can only resist laughter for so long before it wells up and cannot be stopped.

Sure I could return to my grumpiness if I wanted to but why would I? It feels far better to laugh, to enjoy life, and to appreciate the work I've done training my mind to seek out positive thoughts when uncomfortable feelings rise in me.

I've been deliberately steering my mind - like a small child - in the direction of happy thoughts for some time now. Because I have a bit of a "wild child" inside of me - this has been no quick or easy task. It took years to convince her that it was really okay to be happy. She thought her world would disintegrate if she didn't monitor every detail for danger or darkness.

Spiritual practice doesn't guarantee that there will be no down moments. What it does do is strengthen our ability to shift our own moods and to take delight in the small and great blessings of life.