Hello friends, it’s been quiet a while that I wasn’t able to post a new blog. I apologize deeply from my heart. I love writing, speaking, encouraging and inspiring people and that’s why I’m back. I will do my best to write at least once or twice a week to inspire and encourage you. Thank you for dropping by today. For my friends who already have subscribed in this blog, thank you for sticking around, I really appreciate it (by the way, I’ve changed my blog site’s name from Just To Inspire to Live a Happy Life Blog to RommelAtanque.com ). And if you happen to visit here for the first time, a big thanks to you too. If you can also subscribe by signing up on the right side of this site, it won’t take a minute of your time, then I can send you inspiring articles directly. I will also be giving free eBook to my subscribers in the coming weeks. Anyway, here’s our article for today entitled: Live, Love and Laugh.
Live. Oh, how wonderful it is to be alive! You wake up in the morning, drink your coffee or tea and eat your breakfast with the people dear to you. You prepare for work or school or any endeavor scheduled for you today. It’s great to be alive today isn’t it? Others did not make it today. According to the website www.ecology.com/birth-death-rates/, there are nearly two people die each second, 105 people die each minute, 6,316 people die each hour, 151,600 people die each day and 55.3 million people die per year! Life is so fragile. But thank God today you are alive. Live a life each day. Make the most of your day. Don’t waste any moment in hate, jealousy, anger, bitterness and all the negative feelings that could ruin your day and your relationships with people. Life is so short to dwell on those things. Focus on the good, the beautiful and the bright side of life. Also live a life that pleases your Creator, knowing that you have an appointment day with Him someday. Live a life of significance and meaning, touching people around you and inspiring them. Live and live well.
Love. Are you in love? Falling in love or falling out of love? Life is more delightful and meaningful if we love and being loved. Speaking of touching others with our lives, loving them is the highest expression of a life well lived. God is love and He loved us so much. We were created in love, to love God and reflect this love to others. There are so many definitions of love but God’s love is the greatest – an agape, unconditional and sacrificial love. Hard to do? Yes, I agree. Impossible to do? Not really. As it is said, “We cannot give what we don’t have. We can only give what we have.” We can live a life of love if first we received this kind of love from God Himself. By the way, He gave it already. For God so loved the world (you and me and everybody) that He gave His one and only Son. Receive God’s love and replicate it back to Him and to others. Love and love much.
Laugh. How often do you laugh in a day? It’s been said that children laugh more often than adults do. Some statistics say that kids laugh 300-400 times in a day compared to 15-20 times for adults. Why? What happened? If you’re an adult reading this, for sure you have some answers. Researchers, psychologists, therapists, counselors and doctors agreed that as people grow up and grow old we laugh less. There are so many factors but one is that we become more serious about life due to stress-related things in life. The more stress we have, the more serious we become and the less we are able to laugh. And here’s the bad report: stress can cause various illnesses and shorten your life. The good news is, laughter can ease the stress and lengthen your life. Why? Laughter is the best medicine, right? Just want to share quickly the short-term and long term effects of humor and laughter in our lives based on an article Humor and Stress by Mary Sherman. She wrote that laughter can (short-term effects):
1. Stimulate organs in our body – Laughter enhances your intake of oxygen-rich air, stimulates your heart, lungs and muscles, and increases the endorphins that are released by your brain.
2. Activate and release your stress response – Laughing fires up and then cools down your stress response and increases your heart rate and blood pressure. The result? A good, relaxed feeling.
3. Soothe tension – Laughter can also stimulate circulation and aid muscle relaxation, both of which help reduce some of the physical symptoms of stress.
And the long-term effects of laughter:
1. Improves your immune system
2. Relieves pain
3. Increases personal satisfaction.
How to laugh more often? Here are some of my suggestions:
1. Read humorous articles, blogs and books (I have written a series of this, pardon me for the short ads).
2. Watch comedy shows, movies, videos, t.v. sitcoms and podcast (those that can make you laugh but at the same time won’t pollute your mind). There’s a lot on YouTube and they are for free!
3. Chat and mingle with funny people (if you can’t find one call or pm me). And maybe you might change some of your friends, check their laugtherometer (just my term for people’s laughter level).
4. Become a child again and find joy in simple things (buy yourself one whole cake or a gallon of ice cream but don’t eat them all, put some on your face and look at the mirror, take a “selfie” and post it on social media).
5. And here’s the best: When your creditors come, tell them Jesus paid it all!(Just kidding, pay them your debts so you can laugh more often again, you can sleep well and have less stress).
The Joker said to Batman, “Why so serious?” Likewise I would like to ask you today, “Why so serious? Why not find more ways to laugh?” Laugh and laugh often. In my next blog we will talk more about this. For now, I just want to inspire you that life is indeed a miracle everyday. So let’s learn to make the most of it. Live. Love. Laugh. Have a great day!