Belly Laughs

I don't remember the last time I laughed, really laughed from deep in the belly until tears rolled down my face. Do you?

I believe we're missing something. We smile. We might giggle (females) or chuckle (males) but we don't roar with laughter anymore. Is it because we don't have anything to laugh about? Or is it because nothing is funny?

I remember watching old Disney movies--no, not the cartoons--but their live action movies. With Six You Get Eggroll, The North Avenue Irregulars, Hot Lead, Cold Feet, Candleshoe, The Apple Dumpling Gang... And I remember laughing. Laughing out loud until I cried.

Do we laugh at anything anymore?

Not too long ago, I was reading a book while waiting at a restaurant. It was a scene where a single guy was babysitting three little boys. The situation wasn't necessarily so funny, but the writer's gift for description was hilarious. I was laughing, trying to keep quiet and not make a spectacle of myself. A woman at the next table asked what I was reading--because she wanted to read something that would make her laugh.

Another author and I were talking. She said, "People won't buy humorous stories." Why not? In this day and age, don't we need laughter more than ever?

What do you think?

anny