Look on the bright side

Runners and marathoners place stickers on their cars to let everyone know how far they have run in competition? You may have seen the little white ovals that say 13.1 or 26.2 and not realized what they were for, but now you know. The other day I saw a meme on Facebook that had the 13.1 and 26.2 stickers, but if you looked at the fine print, it read “13.1 hours: my longest Netflix binge,” and “26.2: the most oreos I’ve eaten in one sitting.” While I’m not quite the definition of this meme, I can certainly relate to it, and am a lot closer to the Netflix binge than I want to be! I justify it by thinking to myself that Netflix is cheaper than running. Read that again; Netflix is cheaper than running. I’m not talking about a gym membership, but running down the roads and trails. That might be free, but running gear isn’t! Granted, I haven’t put pencil to paper, but I think the per show cost of Netflix is cheaper than the per mile cost of running!

Needless to say, I watch Netflix. For those of you who have known me a long time, you know that I enjoy science fiction, particularly Star Trek. I grew up watching the original series most afternoons, then Star Trek: The Next Generation. For a span of several years, new series spun off of the Star Trek name right and left. I tried watching one or two, but just couldn’t get into them, and ended up dropping my commitment to Star Trek. Maybe I was a Trek purist, or I obtained my driver’s license and found better things to do. Either way, for several years I didn’t even think about Star Trek.

Then Netflix came along with instant streaming. Lo and behold, one day I found Enterprise in my suggestions menu. I decided to watch it, and enjoyed the series. I slowly worked my way through it all the way to the end of the series. (I’ll admit that I thought it was actually pretty good, unlike a lot of the other Trek spin offs that are as cheesy as the original.) Needless to say, over the past few years I’ve worked my way through Enterprise, Voyager, and the Star Trek movies. (I tried watching the original series and The Next Generation again, but just couldn’t do it. Too much cheesiness, I guess.) I am finally watching Deep Space Nine, and enjoying the series. The Dominion/Federation war has just begun, so don’t spoil it for me if you know how it all ends.

Why wasn't he ever on Star Trek?

Needless to say, most Star Trek series have the same characters. The strong commanding officer, the straight man, the single ladies’ man, the gung ho security type, the ultra-handy engineer, the pessimist, and the eager youngster. On DS9, the pessimist is the station’s chief security officer, Odo. He’s always the negative one of the bunch, finding the “cloud in the silver lining,” as one character told him while I watched the other night.

I’ll admit my guilt: I’m really good at finding “the cloud in the silver lining.” I don’t know if it’s my problem-solver attitude, a learned behavior, or just a pessimistic nature, but I have to battle against it. No one wants to be around a wet blanket, including the wet blanket! So I work to “keep it light.”  That can be hard to do in today’s world. The news revolves around the latest perceived crises, public figures of all stripes are proclaiming doom and gloom, and social media is littered with bickering dialogues of extremism. Fortunately, the world goes on as people everywhere live their daily lives, going to school, work, raising families, socializing, and participating in community activities. (If there were ever an argument for hope and the persistence of the human spirit, that alone is it. Media and public figures can drum up crises all day long, but the rest of us have to work for a living and keep society moving.)

You have to find some relief somewhere! Laughter is good for both the soul and body. According the pundits, there isn’t a lot to laugh about, so sometimes you have to create your own. Therefore, my dog has a fan page. The Pete Holmes Fan Club currently has 34 fans, and posts every few days. I use it as a form of stress relief, creating some opportunities for laughter and fun. Also, Pete is the coolest dog ever. Weenie dog, happy attitude, cute and snuggly, somewhat playful, and as laid back as can be. I like to post some funny pictures, dachshund jokes, a little cultural commentary, and of course, pictures and comments from Pete himself (or at least my imagining of Pete’s comments).

Some people like to laugh at me for creating a The Pete Holmes Fan Club, but I don’t mind. The point is to create laughter, and it’s doing that. Proverbs 17:22 tells us “a cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.” In other words, laugh! Laugh long, laugh loud, and laugh hard! King David, who saw some hard times, even wrote in Psalm 16 “in Your presence there is fullness of joy.” (He’s talking about God’s presence, in case you didn’t know.) In a sense, when we laugh with joy, we align ourselves with God’s will. We show that we trust Him; and His sovereignty; and his plan for our life.

When is the last time you had “fullness of joy?” Maybe today would be a good day to look on the bright side.