Laughing 'Til I Cried

On my birthday, Clay made me cry...from laughter.
6:00 a.m. and it was still dark.
He snuggled up to me and wished me 'Happy Birthday'.
We lay there quietly until he broke the silence and said, "I spit on myself in my sleep last night."
I lost it...and choked out through chortles and chuckles, "How do you know?"
"It woke me up. I was aware I was dreaming, I felt my my mouth fill up with spit; and I thought, 'I'm in bed - I can't spit.' and then I woke up when it hit my face."

That laugh was one of the best birthday gifts I had all day. It came from my toes and right out my eyes.
My handsome man could have kept that bit of information to himself, but he KNEW it would produce laughter. And in this house, it is practically a SIN to keep joy down...so out the anecdote came.
Boy, am I glad I married him.

The very next day, we were sitting at the breakfast table when I heard:
"Mom, I forget how to wrinkle my chin."
A perplexed look had to have crept across my face because I thought, "Hmm, how DO you wrinkle your chin?"
I tried it myself.
When I looked up and around, I discover all four members of our family with the most hilarious expressions on our faces...wrinkling our chins.

*Go ahead, look in the mirror and wrinkle your chin. Better yet, ask someone else if THEY can wrinkle their chin. Clay thinks you should also ask them to say, "Dur" when they make the face. Either way, just TRY not to laugh.*

This whole exchange was innocent enough, but it made me laugh until I cried...and then I just started crying. Right there at the breakfast table.
My husband's eyes got big - eyebrows raised. I had to laugh at the ridiculousness of it all and responded, "Guess I just needed a good cry. I don't know WHAT is going on with me."
I really didn't.

I still don't know what that was all about.
How does one emotion switch to another so quickly?
I could complain, but instead I praise God for the emotions He gave me. Because of them, I can easily cry WITH loved ones and FOR them. I can embrace their excitement and easily share my own.
And then, then there is the laughter. It comes easily - even in the middle of arguments, fear, or sadness.
All it takes is a clever comment and my emotions get distracted from the intensity of the moment. (As you could already guess, Clay REALLY appreciates - and takes full advantage of - that quality.)

Thank you Lord for those ever-changing emotions, a husband who handles them well...and thank you for laughter that leads to tears.