Laughter

Laughter Laughed out loud this morning when I started my playlist. I laughed out loud because when I was in high school, there was no such thing as a ‘playlist’, we just turned on the radio hoping the DJ would play our favorite song. Or, in my case, I had some 45s that I could play on my ‘record player’, but, of course you had to buy those, and I did not get an allowance. I had to work for any money I got, except as a gift. My dad did not pay for chores. He said, “I am not paying you to make up your bed, wash dishes, or keeping the house clean “cause you are eating my beans”. So…that was that!

But, what were other words we used that have now gone into the ozone or have been re-defined? Rock and Roll- used to refer to an era of music; reinterpreted to mean--make it happen! Kiss my grits--used as a stand-in for kissing an actual part of our anatomy, but now, young folks are asking, “What’s grits?” No way, Jose-used to mean I am not going to do that—period. Now, people ask: Who’s Jose? Bump that--used to mean forget about it, switched to doing the bump (dance) and now to fist bump Make my day--rendered by Clint Eastwood actually meant, go ahead and try to shoot me before I shoot you. Today, we say, ‘That made my day’ and they meant to express something pleasant or positive happened. There are no longer stand offs to see who can ‘draw’ the quickest, people just shoot and ask questions later—period. Finally, ‘clean as a whistle’, ‘sharp as a tack’, and decked out were used to compliment someone about how well they were dressed. Today, very few people are dressing up, even for work, so our new words are tacky, grungy, and Eew! Yes, I started my day off laughing because laughter is one of the few remaining treasures that I use to uplift my spirit and create fun in my life. Leaders need to laugh more, bringing joy to themselves and others.