Thursday, July 22, 2010

The Grace of Humor

-by Saturnine 

“I dreamed that I was walking down the beach with the Goddess. And I looked back and saw footprints in the sand.
But sometimes there were two pairs of footprints, and sometimes there was only one. And the times when there was only one pair of footprints, those were my times of greatest trouble.
So I asked the Goddess, "Why, in my greatest need, did you abandon me?"
She replied, "I never left you. Those were the times when we both hopped on one foot." And lo, I was really embarrassed for bothering Her with such a stupid question.”


When researching for this particular grace, I must have stumbled across hundreds of Pagan Humor sites. I found some pretty good ones too, which is good I guess, because it means we Pagans must have a good sense of humor right?

Humor is a funny thing. (No pun intended) It is the part of each of us that can laugh instead of cry, look at the rainbow instead of the rain, see the silly in everyday. It is vital for everyone, not just Pagans to have some sense of humor. Like Henry Ward Beecher says, “A person without a sense of humor is like a wagon without springs. It's jolted by every pebble on the road. “So why is humor so important for Pagans specifically?

Sylvan discusses in her book (The Circle Within: Creating a Wiccan Spiritual Tradition. (Llewellyn, 2003) that humor is essential so that we as Wiccans take our religion seriously, but should not take ourselves too seriously.  She says, “The minute you begin to take yourself too seriously, the Lord and Lady will send you a gentle (and generally embarrassing) reminder that the universe, by and large, is a joyous place to be.” I think we can agree with her as I’m sure we’ve all been there. I will be the first to admit that the second I get into Circle, I’m the first to giggle at something.

Humor also allows us to focus on the joy of life even during our most challenging times. A humorous sentiment can often lighten a very dark mood and rescue us from the pits of despair. I remember going to my grandmother’s funeral and talking with a friend in the corner of the room while everyone else was walking around with the “I’m so sorry” look on their faces. We were laughing and smiling and talking about all the funny things my Grandmother had done in her lifetime and it made me feel so much better about her death. Humor, in this instance, showed me that her life was to be celebrated instead of her death being mourned. It lifted my spirits and helped me get past her passing in a healthy and uplifting way.

Humor and laughter can also be a sign of success. Those that have what they want and need can often be seen laughing heartily and often. Laughter is also contagious. Being a happy person is infectious and people want to be around others who can make them smile and laugh.

As Pagans, we are often looked at as strange and sometimes, in the worst situations, thought of as evil and wrong.  Having a sense of humor about these thoughts helps us to see past the stereotypes and see our religion for what it is. I should note here that although most of us can take a joke or two about being Pagan and different, we often make fun of those who practice other religions as well. I don’t know any Pagan who doesn’t have a joke about “The Christians” up their sleeve. I’ve also witnessed groups of Pagans joking about them to the point where the jokes stray from harmless and fun to just plain bashing. We should be careful with our humor and realize when we have taken a joke too far; as I’m sure we would appreciate from those that are different to do for us.
Let us think on these things, and to finish things off I leave you with:

Pagan Pick-up Lines
(collected from various sources)


·         Hey babe, what's your sign? What's it's ascendant? What is your planet alignment in Venus during Cancer's revolving around the Fourth House?
·         Read any good Llewellyn Books lately?
·         Haven't I seen you someplace before in another life?
·         Yes, I'm handfasted, but that's not "technically" marriage.
·         What's a nymph Goddess like you doing in a place like this?
·         You have the prettiest third eye I've ever seen.
·         You're feet must be tired because you've been Spiral Dancing in my mind all night long.
·         Is that a May Pole in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?

Oh, and one more!

Q--What do you call a club for unattached Witches?
A--Craft singles

2 comments:

  1. I like the Maypole joke... and the Craft Singles XD I literally giggled for a full minute. ^.^

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  2. I found a t-shirt once that had a picture of Thor on it that said "My god carries a hammer, yours was nailed to a cross. Any questions?"

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