Friday 27 April 2012

The Gift of Laugher

" I would rather regret the things that I have done than the things that I have not”
Lucille Ball
Boker Tov:
I love it when my friends, like Beth, leave comments. Not just because this way I know folks are reading our blog, but because their comments add so much.
Like Beth said in her last comment, Miss Ball never failed to bring a laugh to us. I hope one day to have the full seven years of I Love Lucy on DVD, but for now I just enjoy the last season I taped off TV.
One of my treasures is the Here's Lucy Show. My mother gave me the DVD set as a birthday gift few years ago.
By the time I was introduced to I Love Lucy, the show had been off the air for years, Lucille and Desi were already divorced and remarried to other people. But I still loved the show.
There was so much I leaned from Lucy; never give up, never stop dreaming. She wrote a lousy novel. But she still wrote a novel. She baked a huge loaf of bread, but she still baked bread. She got a charlie horse while dancing for the Queen, but she danced for the Queen. She was willing to at least try.
I remember in second grade school being asked to play the role of a teacher in the school play. I was so frighten. But then I thought, "Lucy would never pass this up!" So I threw my head back, put my hands on my hips and began to practice my grown up walk. Later, Mummy gave me an old pair of black high heeds and taught me how to walk in them.
Sadly, there are no pictures of me walking on stage in my mother's purple and black dress and black high heels, trying not to break my neck. But I was a hit.
Once the laugher died down and I could finally deliever my lines, I learned the power of making people laugh. How big people smile, how their eyes brighten. That for a brief moment they forget their troubles and pain. How it can heal. Even bring peace.
I would take my I Love Lucy videos with me when I worked as a Hospices Nurse's Aide. It was the highlight of my patients day as they recieved their daily dosage of laugher.
Even now, with all we are going through, Lucy's attics not only lifts our spirits, but gives us hope.
Lucille Ball left us much richer for the time she graced this planet.
Thank G_D, for the blessing of Lucille Ball.

2 comments:

Beth said...

The picture you included here is from my favorite episode of "I Love Lucy." Slays me every time!

I think by the time I was watching TV, ILL had been off the air for several years, but reruns were always on. I enjoyed all the other shows, too, but there was something about Lucy and Desi together.

It's hard to believe the original show is about 60 years old now. True genius stands the test of time, doesn't it? :)

Marty said...

I have two favorite I Love Lucy Episodes: The Vit-a-meeta-Vegamin episode and the one where Lucy and Ethel try their hand at working in a chocolate factory. Classics!