Thank God for the Funny

Thank God for the funny!

We've been all sorts of sad over here. Our dog, who was honest to goodness a soulmate to me, passed last weekend. And ya know what... I forgot how core level tired this whole grief thing makes you. I remember now.

But also, thank God for the funny!

Because on the days when heartache is heavy, it feels like the door is closed and the room is dark. But funny... that can peak in like sunshine through a crack.

Earlier today I tossed my youngest boys into the van and headed out for a few errands. First stop... coffee for mom. Everything seemed to be going as it should. Pull up to the microphone, order the caffeine, lemonades for the boys, drive forward to the window, pay.

But instead of waiting and grabbing our order, my tired sad haze won out over the last step. And I DROVE AWAY. Juuust about to turn out of the lane, I realize what I'd done. Shake off the tired, make sure no one's behind me, and baaaaaaack up to the window.

Except I can't land the van anywhere near the window going backwards. So toss it into park, hop out and WALK to the window.

Thank God for the funny.

I'm cracking up. I see the woman at the register cracking up. I start making jokes about how badly I guess I need that coffee. She laughs and responds with "Would you like to add coconut or green tea flavoring?" Hmmm. I launch into full out loud conversational wondering if coconut or green tea is really a flavoring for coffee now, why don't people just order green tea and leave it out of the coffee, maybe actually coconut wouldn't be too bad, has she tried either, I guess it's been a really long time since I've bought coffee, there are whole new flavors now. I was almost convinced to go with coconut, and then...

She begins frantically gesturing to her headset. And I realize she's not talking to me. She's taking the order for the poor chap behind me about to pull around and find a crazy lady standing at the drive-up window.

Thank God for the funny.

I start the whole can't contain the giggle thing again. That kind when you're just so dang overtired, and the more you try to hold it in, the bigger it gets. My whole life I've had cheeks that almost cover my eyes completely when I really smile big, so through my squint I see that she's doing that silent but bent over laughing thing.

And thank God for the funny.

Thank God for someone willing to see the funny with you.

By then I’m doing my 'embarrass my kids' type loud laugh, and gesturing back to her that I’ll try to be quiet now so she can take this next order.

Except I need to ask for straws. To which she begins charades type motioning trying to get me to see the straws IN MY HAND because she already gave them to me…. while I take WAY too long looking confused and trying to read the clues.

Thank God for the funny.

I crack up all over again. She cracks up all over again.

Thank God for the funny!

She’s still on her headset so I wave, do some awkward bow along with my goodbye as I climb back into my car. My boys are laughing. The woman at the register is blowing me a kiss and her chest is moving up and down with laughter. I’m crying laughing. Because it was the simplest, silliest thing.

... But it let the sunshine peek through the cracks.

And thank God for the funny!