Abstract
Human beings inevitably experience anxiety but attempt to avoid facing it through various forms of self-deception. This avoidance can lead to pathological symptoms. Young and middle-aged adults may be especially susceptible to suffering from anxiety because they are often single-mindedly pursuing means of achieving security. For these and others who fail to embrace life with warm enthusiasm, humor can serve to alleviate stress. This article views humor as a characteristic disposition of older adults—their humor signifying a sense of integrity and wisdom that often accompanies the aging process. Humor binds together feelings of despair and joy and contributes to a faithful reframing of faith and life. This article proposes that individuals acquire humor by perceiving the world as if on a journey to an exotic new place, seeing with new eyes even the most mundane of everyday objects and events. This capacity to perceive beauty in the ordinary world reflects a wisdom of older adults potentially available even to the young.
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Acknowledgements
I would like to thank Moonji Publishing Co. for kind permission to use HyungJong Jeong’s poem, One Little Potted Chrysanthemum.
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This article was funded by the Research Fund of the Presbyterian University and Theological Seminary, Seoul, South Korea, 2017.
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Lee, S.U. Humor as Wisdom for Reframing Life. J Relig Health 57, 551–560 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-017-0535-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-017-0535-5