Laughter

The Last Laugh

Valerie Cullers 3 Comments

“He who laughs last, laughs best.”

Most of us are aware of the pushback that came after the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics. People were especially outraged at the parody of Da Vinci’s Last Supper. To paraphrase the Art Director of the ceremony the day after, he basically said that we should all just have a good laugh and move on. The pushback continues, and now he has come out and said it wasn’t a parody of The Last Supper at all. It was supposed to represent a 17th century Dutch painting, The Feast of the Gods by Jan Harmensz van Biljert. Really? It only took him four days to come up with that explanation. If it was the truth, why didn’t he set the record straight initially instead of talking about how he accomplished his goal of inclusivity at the Opening Ceremony?

I’ve thought a lot about it and to say I was disappointed at the display is an understatement. My spirit was grieved that again Christian symbolism has been upended to make a point for those who wish to display their sexuality in a public in-your-face performance.

Those who put on that performance probably had a good laugh that night and several good laughs since then. But how do you think the Lord felt about the performance? Was he up in heaven wringing his hands and saying, “Oh dear, Oh dear!”?

I don’t think so. He knows those who oppose him and his moral laws, and he knows what their end will be. To quote Psalm 2, verses 1-5, “Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his Anointed One. “Let us break their chains, they say, and throw off their fetters.” The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them. Then He rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath.”

Take comfort, there is coming a day when those who oppose the Lord will have to face him and it will be a very sad day indeed. Better to come to him now while it is possible and the Days of Mercy and Grace are still before us. His hands are always held out for those who will turn from their wicked ways and come to him. No sin is too great for him to forgive. Come while there is still time.

Love, Laughter and a Pile of Socks

Valerie Cullers 21 Comments

Several years ago, I was in a class where I met Frances. She was on the quiet side but had a wonderful sense of humor. I really appreciated her, and we became good friends. One day, she was telling us about Larry. He just would NOT pick up his socks. She had been married to him for years and asked him several times if he would, but to no avail. On one particular day, she told us she had an idea. She was going to let his socks pile up and continue to put new socks in his drawer and see how big the pile would get until Larry picked them up.

Each week, we would check with her on Larry’s (or the pile’s) progress. Each week,it just kept getting bigger and bigger until, after a month, Frances gave up, washed the pile, and put them in his drawer. We asked, “What did you say to Larry?” Her reply, “Nothing.” Another question from the group, “What did Larry say?” Her reply, “Nothing,” and then she just laughed.

Frances and Larry had a great relationship and shared a lot of laughter between them. Even an outsider knew that Larry had indeed noticed the pile, but was going along with it, and seeing how long she would continue to buy him new socks. Frances never spoke about it again to Larry, and each morning she would pick up his socks from the day before and put them in the dirty clothes basket.

For me, this was a great example of what makes a marriage great. There is a lot of give and take and acceptance in a good marriage. No one is perfect and each spouse must accept the shortcomings of the other. If a person can do it with grace and humor, so much the better.

When I see my own husband’s socks on the floor, I just smile and think of Frances. What a woman she was!

Hope you have a wonderful Valentine’s Day!

Image by Bernswaelz. Courtesy of Pixabay.