Being a CarePartner for my husband can be tough at times. Added to that are the tasks associated with caring for our house and I don’t often feel like laughing. Instead I feel tired, cranky and overwhelmed and there is nothing the least bit funny about it.

A great example of this happened the other day. I was outside trying to clear up some of the millions of leaves that had fallen in our yard from the oak tree next door. As I leaned over to pick up a batch of leaves, my glasses slipped down on my face. Unconsciously, I pushed them back up on my nose then realized just how wet and muddy my hands were. I stood up straight and saw my reflection in the window with the streak of brown across my cheek. Trying to wipe it off simply left more of a mess. Laughing at the absurdity of trying to clean it off with mud covered hands, I gave up trying and continued with the leaves.

Finding humor wherever it may be definitely gives me a different outlook on my days. Are my hands too stiff to open a jar? Is the laundry tangled into a knot and banging in the dryer? Did the dog (or the husband) just track in muddy footprints across my freshly mopped floor? I could get angry and yell which would upset the entire household, or I can look for the silliness, find a laugh, and share that. Perhaps it’s the face I make as I struggle with the jar or a song I sing to the beat of the dryer. Maybe it’s tracking the footprints to see where they lead and laughing with the perpetrator. Life is too short and there are enough things to stress about, let’s find more things to laugh about instead.