Laughing Places

       Last Wednesday we went to the ALS Clinic. When we go there, we stay in one room and different specialists come in and talk to us. We see a doctor, a physical therapist, a speech therapist, a dietitian, a pharmacist, a respiratory therapist, and representatives from the ALS Association and the Muscular Dystrophy Association. (It takes most of the day.)
       Alan, Roberta, and I all went. They are very helpful and professional, but sitting in one place and answering a whole bunch of questions can get a little monotonous, unless you make your own fun. Someone came in and asked if I ever laugh inappropriately. (Apparently ALS can make you laugh and cry when you shouldn't.) I took one look at Roberta and started to giggle. I probably didn't need to even answer after that, but I said with my computer, "Yes, but I always have."
       Roberta has been incredibly supportive to me, and this time she backed me up with a story. We bought a car to share after we graduated from college. We wanted to save money, and we found that a car with a clutch was cheaper than a car with an automatic transmission. I didn't know how to drive a stick shift, but Roberta did and she said she would teach me.
        When it came time for my first lesson, we went to a little country road where we didn't think there would be any traffic. Everything went smoothly until we switched seats and I started driving. Then it was time to go up a hill with a stop sign. I couldn't figure out how to get the car to go again after I stopped! Suddenly, a car was behind me! That really added unwanted pressure! I'm not exactly sure how it happened, but we ended up in a ditch! That's when I started laughing. Actually, I think crying or swearing would have been worse. The people behind us were very nice. They helped push us out of the ditch! For some reason, Roberta decided that she didn't want to teach me how to drive a stick shift after all!:) Roberta drove home. Aunt June was there, and she offered to go driving with me. I thought that was very kind, but by that time I felt like I'd do better if I wasn't worried about scaring someone else. I went back out and taught myself how to drive a stick shift.
       When I was asked if I ever laugh inappropriately, my mind went to an entirely different experience. I thought of a time when we were in a junior high school German class. Neither Roberta nor I liked the teacher. We thought he was partial to the boys in the class. He seemed to give grades based upon whether or not he liked you. He called everyone by their last names, which we thought was rude. He would look at me, ask a question, and say, " Willis." I would look back at him, and wait for him to say a first name. More often than not, he would say, " Roberta," and then she would answer his question. That seemed to frustrate him a little. We thought he deserved it for not learning our first names. We had him for three years,  and he never did figure them out! We never have looked alike.
       Anyway, Dena Kopp was a lifelong friend of ours who was also in that class. I don't remember who had the idea, but we decided to see how many people we could get to yawn during German. All three of us yawned as much as we could. Then we waited and watched. It wasn't long before we had quite a few people yawning! Every time anyone would yawn, the three of us would burst into laughter! Mr. Asmus knew we were up to something, but he couldn't figure out what!
       If our mother were alive, she would call these stories "laughing places. " We think that she got that phrase from the Disneyland attraction America Sings. She used to say that everyone should have laughing places. As I have become more and more limited on what I can do, I find myself enjoying and relying on those laughing places more and more.
       This weekend was wonderful because Bryan, my brother, and Nathan, his son, visited. We enjoyed them so much! We listened  to Elder Uchtdorf's Priesthood Session talk again. In it Elder Uchtdorf quoted President Abraham Lincoln as saying that "most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be."
       I think that has been the biggest surprise to me about having ALS. When I control the things I think about and keep my thoughts happy, I handle life better. Even though my body is shutting down, I have so many blessings! Because of Jesus Christ, I have so much hope! The assurance of continuing to live after I die is an incredible comfort to me!
       I certainly don't want to give the idea that I don't ever have down times, because I do. But I have learned that praying like crazy, and then controlling what I allow myself to focus on determine how I ‘endure’ the days I am blessed with!