I saw a tombstone the other day. It was in a churchyard along a country lane tucked away amidst magnificent rolling hills and valleys. It has a lovely view. Nora is buried there. Nora was born in 1783 and died in 1819 when she had reached the ripe old age of just 36. During that time, according to the inscription, she had suffered horrid pains of the worst known to humanity. The words carved in her memory told of hardship which was born with ‘enduring grace and fortitude’. She was obviously highly thought of and I left the Churchyard feeling that I would forever remember Nora from the carving on that tomb. It wasn’t because of some high accolade that she had been bestowed on her, and she wasn’t depicted as someone’s mum (not that there is anything wrong with that proud moniker) nor as someone’s daughter, sister, wife or partner. It wasn’t even because of the ornate structure or complexity of her tomb. Nope, it is because Nora was described in her own right, for her own worth, she was described as an ‘excellent woman’.

Nora was described not defined by labels.

In whatever way she had lived her life, she had left a remarkable impression and I started to think about what we leave behind when we shuffle off this mortal coil. When it’s all done and dusted and we take that final trundle away from our Earthly experience. What would someone put on my tombstone? What would someone put on yours?

I would like to think it could be something pithy like that of Spike Milligan’s which reads

‘Dúirt mé leat go raibh mé breoite’, Irish for “I told you I was ill”.

Or perhaps a little poem about how I bought extra smiles and a bit more laughter to people’s lives. Or something lovely like the inscription on the tomb of Nat King Cole which reads

‘“For all we know
this might only be a dream,
we come and go
like ripples in a stream.”

Who knows and actually it’s not a question that bothers me as my intention is to be buried at sea, in a sack made of a gnarly old sail cloth weighted down with cannonballs, with a pin through my nose to make sure I am dead! With boats of friends around me singing and dancing and carrying on! Off to swim forever with the fish so that’s not going to leave anywhere for lovely words to be inscribed.

But all this makes me wonder to what degree our perceived legacy defines what we do in this life. Do we ever really think about how we are being now will affect how we are remembered in the future?

Legacy, according to the OED means

‘an amount of money or property left to someone in a will’.

But I think legacy means far more than that. It means something we leave behind, sometimes good, sometimes not so good. But it’s a tangible way of saying I was here.

World Laughter Day will be a legacy left behind by Dr. Madan Kataria. This celebration was created in 1998 by Dr. Madan Kataria, founder of the worldwide Laughter Yoga movement. Dr. Kataria, a family doctor in India, was inspired to start the Laughter Yoga movement in part by his studies of facial feedback hypothesis, which postulates that a person’s facial expressions can have an effect on their emotions. According to Wikipedia, the celebration of World Laughter Day is a positive manifestation for world peace and is intended to build up a global consciousness of brotherhood and friendship through laughter. It is most often celebrated by gatherings of people in public places with the sole purpose of laughing. Its popularity has grown exponentiallywith that of the Laughter Yoga movement now counting thousands of Laughter Clubs in more than 105 countries.

After studying with Dr K in India to achieve my Laughter Yoga Teaching qualification, I stayed on with him to share his work and get some in-depth learning of what motivates this man and why he is so committed to bringing more laughter to the world. It’s simple really. He knows the power of laughter. He knows how it changes people’s lives and he has seen the wonderful benefits that Laughing for no reason can bring to help people have better lives.

His legacy will be a movement of goodwill. A movement that engages with people and helps them to release endorphins simply by choosing to laugh without relying on comedy or jokes or humour. Without malice and without the need for one-upmanship. Simply a laugh which becomes contagious and really helps people to connect with one another.

I love being a part of this movement and I shall enjoy World Laughter Day on May 3^rd. I shall walk up a hill, look around at the beauty of Mother Earth and laugh heartily and without anyone around…unless they want to join me at a safe distance! It will be, for me, a celebration of life which, is more needed than ever right now.

It may be seen as bonkers. I may have strange looks thrown my way but maybe, just maybe, I will brighten up someone’s day, bring a little cheer to them and make a difference whilst I am still on the planet. Maybe that will be my legacy!

I would LOVE to be remembered as an excellent woman. I can think of no higher honour but if I can be thought of as one who brings laughter then that’ll do for me!

Words from:

Wikipedia and the Oxford English Dictionary