Humour! I’m certain we need more laughs in our lives. Tonight I got the chance to see John Cooper Clarke and I laughed the whole evening. So did everyone else.

I love the way things happen. Quite a few months ago one of my lovely friends mentioned she had got a ticket to go and see John Cooper Clarke. As it fell around the same time as my birthday I decided to treat myself and get a ticket too. I’ve been a fan of his performance poetry since about 1979. His verses were part of the backdrop to my coming of age as an adult. I enjoyed his humour. It fitted with the way the people around me spoke. I found it very down to earth, full of fun and also deeply meaningful. Until recently I still had my original copy of his book ‘Ten Years in an Open Necked Shirt’. Unfortunately it got water damaged and I felt sad letting it go.

Because humour is what keeps me going. When I am snowed under with woe, worry or wrangling I look for the joke. Even if it turns out to be on me. Limericks, funny poems, jokes so old they came from the ark, I enjoy a good laugh. I love to laugh in the good times as well as in the bad. Some of my best memories are filled with laughter. I enjoy that my Dad, Irish through and through, couldn’t resist all of the Irish jokes he heard. And that my Mum watched all the comedy programmes she could. They taught me that it’s only a joke if the other person is laughing. As well as to be able to laugh at myself. They also helped me understand not to judge humour but to search it out wherever I could find it.

Tonight I’m still chuckling about the performance. About the tears of laughter I cried. Along with the feeling that life is wonderful when we all share in the laughter. John Cooper Clarke may not be your humour of choice. But please make sur you laugh as much as you possibly can. Life will feel much lighter. And that’s a great thing to experience.

Ps: I replaced my book with a new, signed copy. Wonderful!

Day 691 of my blogging challenge