Inner-views

An official sensational senior at 65, it just so happened I had picked up the freebie senior newspaper. It listed every single senior center in Chester County. So I decided to get my senior hustle on the old fashion way. No e-mail, no whatsapp, no texting, just simply call and speak directly or leave a message.

Every single Activity Directors sounded upbeat and interested but no one called back! So I took to the road in between personal errands. All of September I drove to schools, senior centers, giving and mailing out postcards. No one called. I waited a few days. No one called.

Keeping my vision positive and never one to give up on anything I set my mind to do, I laughed and laughed alone at home. My plate was full anyway, rehearsing for my one woman show at the prestigious Mercer Museum. Once this gig was off the books on Oct. 5th, I would move forward. Full speed ahead with my latest adventure to keep from going totally nuts by focusing on bringing joy and laughter with LOL4Real! For real.

So ok, I reasoned, I’m going to practice this wonderful thing, I need to get out of the confines of my personal Laughter studio/jewelry making/bass practice/TV/reading room/kids & grand kids ex-playroom space and step out on faith to share this JOY bubbling inside of me!

That’s when I decided I’d VOLUNTEER…yep…give UP any notion of laughing my way to the bank and just do it for HEALTH and FUN benefits…share Laughter Yoga with real people cause I love people and I love laughting. Stop the You Tube laughing with a bunch of other nuts and go it out in the real world! So I did.

Here's the thing about volunteering…you don’t want to waste gas driving far away, especially since you won’t be getting any money to buy gas…that just don’t make no sense now does it? So I called my local, right down the hill senior center to see what’s shaking. 

Jorge' answered the phone and when I explained to him the mission I was on, to bring the JOY of Laughter Yoga to the world, or at least to the senior center, George was also fascinated…especially since I was volunteering!! That night as I practiced with Robert Rivest (again, this guy is addictive), I was feeling the respiratory benefits in my lungs and airways…Having struggled with asthma for many years, Laughter Yoga was working for me in a wonderfully repiratory way. LOL is REAL!

Jorge' gave me the AD’s (Activity Director’s) name and the time I could reach her. I did. The very next day bubbly Brittany called, a child of great vision and curiosity. She was very, very interested so we set up a time on Fridays….for a hour. 10:30am. October 13th…two months to the day I became certified!

I showed up in my full Vista Print LOL4Real! gear…baseball hat, t-shirt, my sign, my blue tooth soundtrack and hooked it UP!  Heads started bopping to a hip hop version of “Lovely Day” by Bill Withers, “Happy” by Pharell, “I love to Laugh” by Mary Poppin’s, “Happy People” by R. Kelly (before he caught that case) and Happy People by Little Big Town….it was invigorating!  LOL4REAL! was starting up in a airy, spotless, rug free (goodbye allergies), bright huge windowed corner of the dining room at my very own local senior center! LOL4REAL, 4 REAL!

As the music played, my girl, Brittany the AD, had all interested ones who were not too keen, (or very moveable with the regular exercise program in the next room) to sign up for LOL4REAL! Everyone signed the liability and photo release forms. 

Brittany wrote names on my $1 store stick it name tags and stuck them on the cloths and over the hearts of: Carol, Missy, Vivian, Bunny, Lucy, Mary Jane and Mae! We pushed aside the round dining tables towards the bay windows and circled up the chairs.

Sitting in the circle, I gently turned down the music, made eye contact and smiled. Calmly introducing myself. I Vanna White'd the LOL4REAL! banner of rules, explained the almost memorized introduction, origin and purpose Laughter Yoga. My very own exciting wellness practice, I could finally share.

Thank YOU, Dr. Madan Kataria! Lynn Ford & Alexa Drubay!!!!

Ok, ladies, In between exercises we will say, "Very good, very good, yeah!" everyone agreed and joined in the movement. I broke protocol and showed them my stack of index cards with 40 exercises written in my own hand. I let them know it is my sincere intention to guide them, but most of all, I would be learning Laughter Yoga WITH them.

To be continued….@ #3 Session