Darlings,

In Lady Yoga fashion, it is my goal to look back in history to see where we have come from, find the yoga in the moments past to keep us rooted in the present and passionate about where we are going in the future.
On that note...

On January 25, 1784 Ben Franklin, in a letter to his daughter expressed his disappointment in the Eagle being selected as the symbol of America. He wanted it to be a turkey.
Loosely expressed, he thought the eagle was a lazy bird with bad moral character. He does not get his living honestly and can’t fish for himself but watches the fishing hawk and steals it from him.
The turkey is much more respectable – a true original native of America. Though a little vain and silly, a bird of courage, would not hesitate to attack.

Trivia, when was Ben Franklin President?
Waiting...
He wasn't!
But, he was the only non president to have his face don currency. Sweet! I want to be on the penny!!

So, ridiculous as it is, it's a nice little idea to bring with us on the mat that history, and politicians can often be funny in their attempts to MAKE history. The Turkey is a fine bird but its better on Thanksgiving and not as our national animal treasure.
But, it's funny.
Let's explore laughter and humor in honor of Ben Franklin.
Enjoy the silliness of putting yourself in postures for health but let go of the seriousness of perfection. It is, just yoga and yoga is designed to move the body to a place of stillness and in preparation for meditation. Yes, you can get strong and fit, but find the fun and certainly, find the funny!

"A day without laughter is like a MacDonald's hamburger without fries"- Gerry Hopman

"The human race has only one effective weapon and that is laughter"- Mark Twain

At the height of laughter, the universe is flung into a kaleidoscope of new possibilities. Jean Houston

Back of every mistaken venture and defeat is the laughter of wisdom, if you listen. – Carl Sandburg

I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out of my nose. –Woody Allen

In the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures. For in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed. –Khalil Gibran

It is impossible for you to be angry and laugh at the same time. Anger and laughter are mutually exclusive and you have the power to choose either. Wayne Dyer

Laughter is the valve on the pressure cooker of life. Either you laugh and suffer, or you got your beans or brains on the ceiling.
Wavy Gravy

Tell the truth. Sing with passion. Work with laughter. Love with heart. 'Cause that's all that matters in the end. – Kris Kristofferson

I believe that laughter is a language of God and that we can all live happily ever laughter. – Yakov Smirnoff

"Recipe for a happy life: Loads of laughter, heaps of humor and a general sprinkling of smiles. Excellent for twosomes or large gatherings"- Gerry Hopman

"Life abounds in comedy, if you look around you"- Mel Brooks

"Never be too busy to laugh or too quick to criticize"- Gerry Hopman

"One of the best things you can have up your sleeve is a funny bone"- Author unknown

"An onion can make you cry, but there never was a vegetable invented to make people laugh"- Will Rogers

"Computers will never replace humans until they learn to laugh"- Author unknown

"There are things that are real- God, human folly and laughter. The first two are beyond comprehension, so we must do what we can with the third"- John F. Kennedy

"Humor is to the soul what rain is to the earth"- Gerry Hopman

"A day without laughter is a day wasted"- Charlie Chaplin

"Laughter is the musical workout of the soul"- Gerry Hopman

"Humor is more important than knowledge"- Albert Einstein

"Through humor you can soften some of the blows that life delivers. And once you find laughter, no matter how painful your situation might be, you can survive it"- Bill Cosby

"You need to smell the roses once in a while, but you also need to tickle you funny bone regularly, so it won't go numb on you"- Gerry Hopman

"We cannot really love anybody with whom we never laugh"- Agnes Repplier

"The more you find out about the world, the more opportunities there are to laugh"- Bill Nye

"Laughter gives us distance. It allows us to step back from an event, deal with it and then move on"- Bob Newhart

"The most wasted day is one without laughter"- E.E.Cummings

"If you don't laugh at your trouble, you won't have anything to laugh about"- Edgar Howe

"Laugh at yourself before anyone else can"- Elsa Maxwell

"You cannot be mad at somebody who makes you laugh - it's as simple as that"- Jay Leno

"If we don't laugh, we would all go insane"- Jimmy Buffet

"Always laugh when you can. It's cheap medicine"- Lord Byron

"The human race has only one really effective weapon and that is laughter"- Mark Twain

"He who laughs last lasts"- Mary Pettibone Poole

"Laughter is inner jogging"- Norm Cousins

"You can't deny laughter, the sound of which has always seemed to me the most civilized music in the world"- Stephen King

"Laughter is the shortest distance between people"- Victor Borge

Humor is emotional chaos remembered in tranquillity. - James Thurber

Laughter rises out of tragedy, when you need it the most, and rewards you for your courage. Erma Bombeck

The beauty of the world has two edges, one of laughter, one of anguish, cutting the heart asunder. Virginia Woolf

And we should consider every day lost on which we have not danced at least once. And we should call every truth false which was not accompanied by at least one laugh. - Friedrich Nietzsche

Man is most comical when he takes himself too seriously.” Og Mandino

Laughter is an instant vacation.” Milton Berle

Humor is the great thing, the saving thing. The minute it crops up, all our irritations and resentments slip away and a sunny spirit takes their place.” – Mark Twain

Imagination was given to man to compensate him for what he is not; a sense of humor to console him for what he is. - Francis Bacon

"Through humor, you can soften some of the worst blows that life delivers. And once you find laughter, no matter how painful your situation might be, you can survive it." - Bill Cosby

A person without a sense of humor is like a wagon without springs. It's jolted by every pebble on the road." - Henry Ward Beecher

"Comedy is acting out optimism." - Robin Williams

Even if you are on the right track, you will get run over if you just sit there. – Will Rogers

Male turkeys can turn their heads red, white and blue by controlling the flow of oxygen to their heads while strutting." John James Audubon

Dance like everyone's watching and laugh at yourself and with others,
Lady Yoga
PS, Happy Birthday Mom, you are the funniest person I know