Laughter is my favourite dessert

Have you ever seen a cat or a dog laugh? Maybe a goat? Only the human being can laugh and enjoy it. Life is one big cosmic joke - if you take it too seriously, you'll miss it.

They tell of a Japanese Zen master named Hotei, "the Laughing Buddha". When he reached enlightenment he simply began to laugh. He went from village to village, and everywhere he arrived he laughed, and all the villagers caught it and began to laugh with him. That was his way of sharing the awakening, and the greatest message of all: don't give life too much serious attention. Taste it, delight in it, but don't be enslaved to it.

It is a great thing to be in joy. In good times, and in hard challenges too.

Laughter has no ego - a person can laugh at themselves and find the funny part in life's situations. It cleanses, brings energy up to the surface, and moves the Qi through the energetic channels within us. If you can laugh while you're unwell, I promise you'll heal faster.

Finding it hard to start? Try a forced smile

Stand in front of the mirror, breathe in through the nose, and as you breathe out smile a big, bright, ear-to-ear smile, one that shows all your teeth. On the in-breath return to your natural face, and on the out-breath smile again. Keep going for a few minutes. You can do it with your family too, just to be safe - the laughter won't be late to arrive.

"You grow up the day you can laugh at yourself." So don't take yourself so seriously, and give yourself a little room to breathe.