This year, one of my New Year’s Resolutions is to put more fun and play into my everyday life and to laugh more. “Why?” you may ask.

I like what happens with my paternal family. When we get together, my mum, dad, brother and myself, we laugh a lot. My mum especially has this charisma to laugh wholeheartedly out of anything. It can be a word, a name, a movement, something one of us has done in the past. We’re never short of good “excuses.” And they don’t even have to be funny. One of us will say something, the other will pick it up and boom, that’s it. In seconds we find ourselves laughing so hard that our eyes are filled with tears.

This is pure joy, pure laughter. Of course we all have difficult issues we’re facing, situations that are not pleasant. But for a moment we share something very special. And after such a good laugh we all feel more lighthearted afterwards. It’s as if our batteries are full again and we can continue with more strength.

That’s exactly the kind of laughter I want to re-introduce into my everyday life. We all have way too many worries to think about and things to take care of. But we don’t need to keep on taking everything, including ourselves, so seriously. Yes, we all make mistakes and no, no one is perfect. That’s a fact and the sooner we accept it the happier we’ll be. The question is “can we laugh at our mistakes?” I don’t mean to be irresponsible and ignore them but I also don’t mean to worry about our mistakes for years and years to come. What I mean is can we accept them, accept ourselves, learn from our mistakes and move on?

I’m sure you’ve heard that when it comes to relieving stress, more giggles and guffaws are just what the doctor ordered. Can you imagine how your everyday life would be if, like children, you’d put more humor, play and laughter in it? What if you’d make a conscious decision to take a break during the day and let go? To tell more jokes, play more with your children or your friends, not take everything personal?

Sounds good, doesn’t it? Well, that’s what I’ll do. And when I wake up in the morning I’ll take a good look in the mirror and start my day, every day, with a smile. I’d suggest you do the same J