Watch a child play. See how utterly transfixed she becomes with her game. It's pure immersion; she has lost herself in the world of play.
You used to do that too when you were a kid. But you can't do that anymore, right?
Wrong.
You were born with the ability to lose yourself. You still have it. It's one of your greatest gifts because it puts you in the present moment (where all the fun is).
Legendary comedian Chris Rush told me there are three things that root you in the moment, as an adult: great sex, gunfire, and laughter. I'll add one more to his list - your decision to be in the moment. Yes, you occasionally find yourself lost in an activity, but you can actually learn to get lost as often as you decide - and, as you'll see, when you do this your success will skyrocket!
Losing yourself in the moment is so important to your health and success, in fact, that I've made it one of my newest Fun Commandments: Get Lost. It turns out that "get lost" is actually one of the nicest things I've ever been told!
Why is it so important to get lost in the moment? Because your life is currently dominated by two pressing illusions that weigh you down like anchors tied to your neck in the deep end of the pool. You've come to accept these illusions to such an extent that they dominate about 96% of your daily thoughts and focus.
What are these two horrible illusions? The future and the past.
You populate your illusions about the future with your fears, hopes, guesses, etc. But the future is a lie - a time-waster at best and an immobilizing fear at worst. The future will never actually arrive, because when it does it will be the present moment!
You place judgements on your past, labeling events failures, successes, mistakes, triumphs, etc. But the past is a lie too; the past is gone and it is a distraction at best and a paralyzing guilt-producer at worst. The past isn't real anymore.
Frightening to think you destroy so much of your time and energy focused on these two illusions, isn't it? And you do waste more time on them than you'd like, don't you? Me too.
The present moment is where all your fun is. The present moment is where all your success is found. The present moment is the only thing real in life.
That's why it's so important to cultivate the ability to get lost. And that's why it's such great news that humor is your biggest ally for getting lost. Humor helps you like nothing else because it is entirely about the present moment.
In fact, humor's ability to transfix you in the moment is one of the main reasons you are gifted with it. Humor is the universe's way of saying, "Hey, you don't have to be imprisoned by the twin illusions of the past and present! You were born with a key - humor. Use it and free yourself!"
Prior to Descartes, by the way, scientists started with a general proposition and then proceeded to find what else could be deduced from that general idea. Descartes proclaimed that the "truth" should not be stated at the beginning of the investigation, but should emerge from the process of investigation and experimentation. "I think, therefore I am" refers, then, to a process we now call the scientific method.
Next week, I'll give you much more fuel for your experimentation with getting lost. I'll share humor's role in the process and help you have fun with your research. I have a pretty good idea, though, that your results with this process will be quite grand - please share them with me.
Cliff Kuhn, M.D.
The Laugh Doctor
"it all starts with a SMILE"
The Natural Medicine of Humor
"Discover a unique, FREE, and incredibly powerful prescription created out of desperation by a (formerly) stressed-out Kentucky psychiatrist"
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