♫ Happy Birthday to Bob Smith ♫

“A joyful heart is good medicine.” King Solomon is credited with giving that little piece of good advice thousands of years ago and it still holds true today. Experts agree that laughter is good for the soul and for your physical health. It's a proven fact that people with a good sense of humor live longer. Nowhere was humor more evident than during a television commercial shoot for Advantage Toyota. Jenn Brooks and I laughed loudly through a few bloopers before getting down to business. Research finds that humor can help you cope better with pain, enhance your immune system, and reduce stress. I am told that when I was much younger my family would have no trouble finding me in a crowd. They would hear my very loud laugh and know exactly where I was. In the world we live today, it's very easy to become discouraged. The economy, healthcare, unemployment, drugs, terrorism, pollution, anxiety, depression, the list goes on and on and if we're not very careful, any of these things can drag us down. Please remember, usually, the space between our ears keeps us from living a vibrant, positive, and healthy life. Now obviously we can't laugh at everything that comes along, but we can certainly put a positive spin on most of life's circumstances.

A good sense of humor has brought me through some very trying times and it can do the same thing for you. The first thing I look for in The Herald-Dispatch every day is Brenda Lucas' column. Today's chuckle is a great way to start the day. As the old song goes, “Let a smile be your umbrella on a rainy, rainy day.” By the way, did you hear the one about....