What Humor Has Taught Me About Holding On
I’ve always had a habit of cracking a joke when things get uncomfortable. It’s not about avoiding the moment; it’s about surviving it.
Humor has been a glue in my life. It’s shown up in the middle of hard conversations, awkward silences, long road trips, and even grief. Especially grief. Not to make light of things, but to make space for them. Sometimes, a laugh is the only thing that lets you take the next breath.
I used to think this meant I wasn’t being serious enough. Perhaps I needed to sit with the pain in silence to prove it mattered. But over time, I’ve learned that humor doesn’t cancel out meaning. It reveals it. It makes things bearable long enough to stay in them.
In my life, the most critical moments have rarely gone to plan. They’ve been clumsy, emotional, unexpected, and almost always followed by a one-liner I didn’t plan to say. It’s just how I move through the world. That’s how a lot of us do.
Humor doesn’t erase the hard stuff. However, it can complement it.
I’ve come to believe that there’s real strength in being able to laugh while holding something heavy. It means you’re still here.
You’re still human. You’re still trying.
And for me, that’s reason enough to keep going and to keep telling the stories that matter, even if they come with a raised eyebrow or an unexpected punchline.
So if you find yourself smiling at the wrong time, or laughing in the middle of something that’s supposed to be serious, don’t second-guess it. You’re not broken. You’re built to feel things all the way through.
I’m grateful for the laughs I didn’t see coming. They’ve carried me further than I ever expected.
