FESTOONS OF LAUGHTER

Draping the heart and soul with more smiles than frowns is not as easy for some as for others. Admittedly, people who seem to enjoy life are always more pleasant to be around than those who are miserable, but I'm not totally convinced that it is a defining factor in whether a person is truly under the influence of the holy spirit.

I must confess that at times when I see somebody who is too happy, I get skeptical. I'm speaking of a person who never seems to be sad. It just doesn't seem natural that you would smile constantly. Being happy is great, but who can walk on the mountaintop constantly?

I know I can't. So I strive in my situation for the kind of warmth of inner glow that comes from a laughter that doesn't produce some contrived belly laugh. I find the times of simple calm enough for me on occasions.

It opens the heart and mind to a vision beyond the now. By that I mean, when the fog of dreariness is lifted, God's spirit can touch with a special light that allows one to see more than just one's surroundings.

I'm not speaking of some altered state of thinking. Merely that in the transcendence of emotions where one is sensitive to such shifts in sensations, it can open one's awareness to truths and thoughts you might otherwise have missed.

That for me is a festoon of laughter, which some will never know. We seek to be entertained, not find a path to greater light and it's serenity.

But since that is only a place we can truly go with the Lord's help it is easy to miss or not appreciate. There is no handbook to spell how the details of what to expect or when it comes from God. I know the bible is a good guide to telling us what is a genuine reaction to when the Lord graces with a unique festoon of laughter as only he can inspire.

However, that doesn't mean everyone is willing to accept the quietness of inner festoons that don't come through shouting. And yet, absent the clamor and show, what can shine that is far more touching than when it is force for the sake of impressing.

I only hope my reflections make some sense. For what I'm speaking about is the simple need to be honest in one's emotions. It is so easy to say and do things we think will gain us approval, but to have them be merely and act.

Only then, when we have silence the contrived applause to achieve an artificial smile will we truly be prepared to accept the kind of festoon that is divinely blessed. That just requires us to above all be willing to listen more than shout.

And to accept that the best form of festoon is the one that fits us naturally. That may be as simple as a small curl of the lips. Other's may never even notice it. However, God sees it just the same.