Giggle Therapy

TC: My days have been hard. The past two years have been… challenging (an understatement). Health challenges, grief, gentrification fallout… The hits don’t stop, unfortunately.

But I laugh every day.

My family, as dysfunctional as any other, made me laugh constantly with their rude, unrepeatable comments. TV shows make me chuckle, whether purposely or not (looking at you, treacly medical dramas). My cat cracks me up by being an asshole *every* day. My friends—God blessed me with many, from first grade till now—are either real-life comedians like my friend Orlando Bishop or shoulda-been comedians (basically everyone else). People who think they’re not funny sometimes say the funniest shit. Social media makes me double over with laughter. And I crack myself up: either with my innate clumsiness, running commentary on any and everything that crosses my path, and the general absurdity of life. We’re all fumbling around in the dark looking for the same light switch. It’s farcical!

Humor is my #1 coping skill, honed since grade school. If you made people laugh, they didn’t make fun of you as much, especially if you could laugh at yourself. I chuckle, I guffaw and if you’re lucky, I snort uncontrollably.