Laughter - A Well Examined Life

God at the Comedy Club

In the beginning there was poop. God then molded the excrement into human form, which he then tickled. This caused his creation to laugh and come alive.

This is not my lame attempt at humor but rather the creation myth of aborigines of South Australia.^[1] And the importance they ascribe to humor in the act of creation is not unique.

Hactcin, the God of the Jicarilla Apache, first created the animals, and laughed at the abundant variety of creatures roaming the earth, each with its peculiar habits and idiosyncrasies. It is said this is why people today laugh at the behavior of animals.

Character

What is Character? Is it something that can be identified, described or developed? Is character fixed or can it be changed? Does it determine our fate, as the Greek philosopher, Heraclitus, declared? Are the events in our lives merely the manifestation of our individual and collective character, as postulated by Henry James? For centuries, philosophers, theologians, scientists and others have wrestled with the enigma of human character.^[1]

A person’s character traits include not only his virtues and flaws, but also morally neutral qualities, such as tendencies, preferences and quirks. And when we assess character, we do not limit ourselves to individuals. We also assign character traits to families, associations, religions, and nationalities.