At some point in our lives, we’ve all had fun. All of us. For some of us, it may have been a fleeting second sometime in 2005, but we have all had something happen to us, with us, around us that brought a smile to our face and a lightness to our being.
It’s hard to have fun these days for a number of reasons. The obvious one, of course, is that there are people running things at the moment who seem to get off on causing misery.
There must be other reasons, however. There usually are. For me, personally, it’s waiting—I don’t deal well with uncertainty and so I’d like to know right away what I need to do to prepare for that vague something that’s ahead of all of us. It might be other reasons for you, personal reasons that only you know.
I’m not writing to recount why we’re all anxious and miserable, though. No, I’m writing to remind you (and perhaps myself) how to have fun.
I am thinking back to the most fun I’ve had and here are some common elements:
Spontaneity
Laughter and humor
Good company, not always with familiar people
Doing things for the sheer joy of doing them
Feeding curiosity (otherwise known as “What happens when I push this button?”)
Music
Liquor and cursing a blue streak (sometimes, not gonna lie)
I used to be funny—perhaps this is just me humoring myself. I used to laugh far more often than I do now. Then again, satire used to be funny, too, instead of just frighteningly prescient.
I will laugh again. I look forward to more joy in my life, however short or long it may be.
I have glimpses of joy now and again. It’s still there. You must have seen it, too. How do we enjoy it?
I think the elements that worked before still work. Good company is always good company. Music is always music. They’re classic. The things that lift our spirits never go out of style. And though they may be hard to see, the things that bring us joy are always just under our noses.
We can do this. We haven’t forgotten how to have fun. It’s just that we might need a refresher. We can do this.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to practice my spontaneity and go streak the neighbors …