Laughing In Spite of Yourself
Quite a few people commented to me that I have no shame, after yesterdays, S**t Happens blog.
I asked why, every time someone stated it. "Isn't it obvious?" was one. Hmmm, I thought. That experience was embarrassing to say the least, humiliating, mortifying, yes, but shameful? I didn't agree.
Shameful is defined: a painful feeling of humiliation or distress caused by the consciousness of wrong or foolish behaviour by someone else to make you feel ashamed.
I felt like Richard Nixon, saying to everybody I am not ashamed!
I am human though, and part of being human is feeling embarrassment. Heaven knows, I have been embarrassed a good many times in my life. I know I am not alone, everyone, everywhere has experienced that emotion at some point in their life. I, have the ability to laugh at myself, and in doing so, I hope others can too. Life is stressful, and I believe we each have the same opportunity to turn something negative into...a funny negative. Let's face it, there's nothing positive about shi****g your pants, but you can either laugh at yourself or cry. I chose to laugh.
Over the years, I have seen things that others have done that is embarrassing. Of course I laugh, I am warped like that. At a Christmas party, a few years ago, one of the ladies in attendance could be described as cold and aloof, I heard many ladies making rude comments about her being standoffish. She came out of the bathroom stall with her dress tucked into the back of her pantyhose. The women all around who had made those comments were snickering at her. I walked over to her and told her. She, of course thanked me more than once, and explained her husband was new to this organization, and she was trying to make a good impression on his bosses. She would have made an impression alright! We all had a good laugh, her, me and all of the other ladies in the washroom. They realized she was not a snob, she was just stressed.
We all have an opportunity to take the sting out of embarrassing situations. Sure, we can laugh and walk away, or we can laugh, and speak to the person and reassure them you have had a similar experience. I have comisserated with people on many occasions, explaining to them I knew what they were feeling. Usually, I tell them one of my stories, which in turn makes them laugh and feel better about their own situation. I believe, my shi**y pants story will be hard to top.
Nobody likes to be laughed at. Laughed with, yes. It's a common fear we all share, to be the brunt of a joke.
I could write a book on things that have happened to me, at the most inopportune times. I had an appointment for a job interview, I had prepared mentally for questions they might ask me. I was going over different scenarios in my head when my name was called. I stood up, smiled and promptly fell over a plant that was sitting by the base of my chair. I was face first, on the carpet, my resume in a scattered mess on the floor, right at the receptionists feet. I stood up, brushed myself off and had my interview. One of the questions I was asked was "Have you ever had an incident that was stressful, if so give me an example of how you handled it." I started to laugh, and recalled the events leading up to that interview. They asked me if I would have done anything different. I laughed and said "Yes, I would have polished your receptionists shoes while I was down there!" I got the job.
If we can't laugh at ourself, then we have no right laughing at anyone else. Like I said yesterday, s**t happens.
I asked why, every time someone stated it. "Isn't it obvious?" was one. Hmmm, I thought. That experience was embarrassing to say the least, humiliating, mortifying, yes, but shameful? I didn't agree.
Shameful is defined: a painful feeling of humiliation or distress caused by the consciousness of wrong or foolish behaviour by someone else to make you feel ashamed.
I felt like Richard Nixon, saying to everybody I am not ashamed!
I am human though, and part of being human is feeling embarrassment. Heaven knows, I have been embarrassed a good many times in my life. I know I am not alone, everyone, everywhere has experienced that emotion at some point in their life. I, have the ability to laugh at myself, and in doing so, I hope others can too. Life is stressful, and I believe we each have the same opportunity to turn something negative into...a funny negative. Let's face it, there's nothing positive about shi****g your pants, but you can either laugh at yourself or cry. I chose to laugh.
Over the years, I have seen things that others have done that is embarrassing. Of course I laugh, I am warped like that. At a Christmas party, a few years ago, one of the ladies in attendance could be described as cold and aloof, I heard many ladies making rude comments about her being standoffish. She came out of the bathroom stall with her dress tucked into the back of her pantyhose. The women all around who had made those comments were snickering at her. I walked over to her and told her. She, of course thanked me more than once, and explained her husband was new to this organization, and she was trying to make a good impression on his bosses. She would have made an impression alright! We all had a good laugh, her, me and all of the other ladies in the washroom. They realized she was not a snob, she was just stressed.
We all have an opportunity to take the sting out of embarrassing situations. Sure, we can laugh and walk away, or we can laugh, and speak to the person and reassure them you have had a similar experience. I have comisserated with people on many occasions, explaining to them I knew what they were feeling. Usually, I tell them one of my stories, which in turn makes them laugh and feel better about their own situation. I believe, my shi**y pants story will be hard to top.
Nobody likes to be laughed at. Laughed with, yes. It's a common fear we all share, to be the brunt of a joke.
I could write a book on things that have happened to me, at the most inopportune times. I had an appointment for a job interview, I had prepared mentally for questions they might ask me. I was going over different scenarios in my head when my name was called. I stood up, smiled and promptly fell over a plant that was sitting by the base of my chair. I was face first, on the carpet, my resume in a scattered mess on the floor, right at the receptionists feet. I stood up, brushed myself off and had my interview. One of the questions I was asked was "Have you ever had an incident that was stressful, if so give me an example of how you handled it." I started to laugh, and recalled the events leading up to that interview. They asked me if I would have done anything different. I laughed and said "Yes, I would have polished your receptionists shoes while I was down there!" I got the job.
If we can't laugh at ourself, then we have no right laughing at anyone else. Like I said yesterday, s**t happens.
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