“Grandma, why did the chicken cross the road?” Her face is precious and she’s about to burst to tell me the punch line. A four year old’s humor is so much fun. They’re just discovering how to say funny things on purpose to make people laugh.
“Knock, knock.”
“Who’s there?”
“Boo.”
“Boo who?”
“Don’t cry, it’s just a joke!” And she collapses into giggles.
Her dad, the Middle One, and his best friend from down the street used to spend hours sitting at the small table in our kitchen telling each other silly jokes and laughing hysterically. The girls and I would cover our ears and groan at their corny material, but watching the two of them having such a good time together, telling the same terrible jokes over and over, was priceless.
Silly jokes like these are classic and not just for four year olds. I remember a list one of the kids brought home in high school that gave potential answers from various well known historical people. I found it again recently at philosophynow.org.
“Why did the chicken cross the road?
Mark Twain– the news of it’s crossing has been greatly exaggerated.
Plato– for the greater good.
Ernest Hemmingway– to die. In the rain.”
And these are just a few of them.
My dad taught me high school algebra, chemistry, and physics. His classes were difficult and he expected his students to do the work and keep up. He was organized and kept the lessons short and to the point and he always had time left at the end of class to spend a few minutes just talking and connecting with his students. Telling his newest silly joke was a favorite way to help us unwind and rest our brains before we went on to our next class. Jokes like, “Have you heard the one about the difference between an alligator and a crocodile? One sees you later and one sees you after a while,” were the kinds of jokes that would make us roll our eyes, shake our heads, and laugh just because it tickled him so much to tell them.
I read a post from CBC Kids on cbc.ca called 10 things You Never Knew About Laughter. According to the article, laughter fights stress by causing the release of endorphins making us feel happy, babies laugh about 300 times each day, and when we laugh, our bodies release a hormone that boosts our immune system. Laughter really is good medicine.
If you’re joke challenged like me, you can never remember any good jokes. And if, like me, you do remember the jokes, you have trouble remembering the punch line. So, here are a few good ones from our family to yours to jump start the joke telling:
Where does the king keep his armies? In his sleevies.
What did the pirate say when he became an octogenarian? Aye matey!
If an English teacher is convicted of a crime and doesn’t complete the sentence, is it a fragment?
What do you call a dog that does tricks? A labracadabrador.
Why did the scarecrow win an award? He was outstanding in his field.
Why do watermelons have weddings? Because they cantelope.
Why shouldn’t you wear glasses to play football? Because it’s a contact sport.
What’s the difference between a well dressed man on a tricycle and a badly dressed man on a bicycle? Attire.
A farmer went to collect his 27 sheep and returned with 30 sheep. His wife asked, “Where did the extra sheep come from?” The farmer replied, “I rounded them up.”
Not too long ago, the Middle One was singing the song December 1963 rather loudly. “Oh what a nighttttt!”
The Four Year Old: “Momma has a headache!”
The Middle One: “If I had a head like that, mine would hurt too.” (An insult he learned from his dad)
The Four Year Old: “Then would you be twinsies?”
The Middle one: “Huh?”
The Four Year Old: “You’d both have the same head!”
Her humor is a work in progress, but she’s a quick learner.
Laughing together as a family is one of the best parts of being together. Our family gatherings are full of humor and stories of good times we have shared. I don’t mind when they rib me, and each other, about our less than stellar moments. And I’m glad we’re bringing the littles up to be okay with laughing at themselves. I’m glad we’re also teaching them to be kind and that laughing with is ok, laughing at is not. Life’s stressful. We all need a good laugh now and then and the bonds we form with shared laughter can get us through the hard times.
There’s been a lot going on in our family’s life lately. I needed something to lighten things up a bit so I texted them and asked for their best silly jokes. It worked and we had some good laughs. I hope you’ll take the time to do the same thing and come up with your own silliness. And, I hope that when you do, you’ll enjoy lots of laughter with your special people.
In the meantime, here’s you some bonus material:
How many opticians does it take to change a lightbulb? One? Or two? One? Or two?
My wife told me to stop acting like a flamingo, so I had to put my foot down.
Oh yeah, back to the Four Year Old’s favorite joke.
“Why did the chicken cross the road?
Shortcut!”
Be safe. Be well. Be Blessed.
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