Last week I wrote a post proposing a MilSpouse version of the reality show Stars Earn Stripes. While most readers expressed their understanding of the humorous nature of it, one reader did not find it amusing. She believes that “Making light of any version of military life is not funny.”
A few days later, Jacey wrote a post about why we love naked soldiers, a response to the hilarious photos people are posting on the “Support Prince Harry With a Naked Salute!” Facebook page. Again, a post infused with humor and levity. Yet this too was met with some lack of appreciation for the author’s comedic intentions.
I have to say that I’m a bit confused. I love joking around. I find solace in the fact that life doesn’t always have to be so serious. I think that laughter IS the best medicine. And I truly believe the world is a better place with Will Ferrell and Adam Sandler in it. What’s wrong with a good chuckle every now and then? What’s wrong with finding the humor in our military lives that are typically filled with less than humorous situations?
Whether we’re laughing at a blog post that conjures up the image of Kim Kardashian PCS’ing to Japan with four kids, books like Mollie Gross’ Confessions of a Military Wife, or a video of deployed troops dancing to “Call Me Maybe,” it all boils down to finding some comic relief from the more stressful aspects of our military lives.
We’re not making light of our responsibilities or minimizing the hardships we face as military families. We’re just blowing off steam. We’re escaping, taking a mini mental vacation, even if that vacation is only as long as it takes to read a blog post or watch a video.
Or to put it more simply, as Amy explained to one of those readers who was offended by the naked soldier post, “Military life is full of un-funny. We happily embrace the funny where and when we can.”
What do you think? Should we laugh at military life every now and then? Or should we take ourselves more seriously?
About Heather Sweeney
Comments
I think people who find no humor in life are, for the most part, miserable and sad people. So, let them be. These are the same people who never leave post on overseas assignments and then complain about how much they hate the host country they've never even seen. Keep laughing at the craziness that is military life, because a. the craziness will be there whether you like it or not and b. half the time you couldn't make up what you witness and experience in our little microsom. LMAO!
Someone needs a stool softer. As a mother of three teens, married for 19 years I’ll tell you a little secret. Learn to laugh when its not worth the battle. Bitterness gives you premature lines and sagging cheeks :)
When old buddies meet we laugh at the toughest times. Remember the monsoon. Staying up during midnight guard duty. The guy in next foxhole shot in the butt. The meanest sergeant and crazy colonel. Yuk, yuk, yuk. Humor is everywhere.
Laugh as much as you can even if it is at yourself!
Wow I'm kind of shocked that these people are taking it so seriously. You have to be able to laugh at yourself, the military, and each other sometimes. People need to re-discover their funny bones and laugh a little.
I think that many times the only way to deal with our Military life is to laugh at it! I mean really if you stress every time a date changes you will have a really hard time! You need to take it with a grain of salt, be flexible and laugh whenever you can!!!!
After 24 years, 12 duty stations, 3 overseas deployments, 2 combat tours and a Bronze Star, I can state categorically: HUMOR GOT US THROUGH IT ! ! ! Just ask my wife……….<G>
Anyone with more than a week in the military knows that your sense of humor should never be packed away in your footlocker – and if you have to pack it for a PCS, it goes on top of the duffel bag, so you can reach it quickly.
I don't think it matters Military or Civilian, as I have of course lived on both sides. If you can't find the smallest bit of humor in your surroundings, you will go insane. Which is why all of those lovely comics with the fifties era (and earlier) ladies and gentlemen are pictured smiling saying the most relate-able, funny things, circulate facebook, twitter, and pinterest non-stop. I happen to find tons of humor in sarcasm, but that's just me, and my .02.
"Don't take life so seriously, you'll never get out alive." Truer words have never been said.
Absolutely, we MUST LAUGH!! How would we deal with the most-times stressful, to often times..just to- plain – scary – to -think – about every day issues we have to deal with as military families? I say laugh..and I also say..THANK YOU SPOUSEBUZZ, Ms. Sweeney, Ms. Bushatz and Ms. Eckhart for providing all of us with a bit of well needed humor every now and then.
Not sure why anyone wouldn’t appreciate the humor. I, for one, would love to see KK PCS anywhere without her Hollywood minions and we’re coast guard reservists who have never had the privilege of the experience. In case anyone missed it, that was intended to be funny ;) If you can’t laugh at the absurd you will never survive the joy that is deployment.
I love to laugh, and appreciate when situations are made less-serious. Life can be a pain, we need to seek out the joy.
I think we all love a chuckle every now and then but the topic should be chosen carefully. Not all subjects are fair game. I love being a military wife right up until the moment my husband died. Twenty two years of service and I felt safe and secure the entire time. The military took care of us and provided us with so many opportunities. So like the lady that was so offended remember that if you are going to go public with your comments be kind, and look for the positive because the topic you choose will alway be very important to someone.
Of course we should laugh at our military lives! Sometimes laughing is The only thing that keeps you sane. We deal with so much all the time, most of which is not understood by others, we have to see the lighter side of things. In my family’s case, our children took to naming the houses we lived in: there’s the home house, the green house, the honey house, the broken house, the new house, the yellow house, and ‘no name’ house. It gives us a laugh every time we talk about the houses.
Life is short- We are all painfully aware of that.
Too short not to find humour in the most peculiar places.
Laugh often & Love much!