- A man stood up on the train, and hit his head an the slanting roof. I was unable to repress my snorts of laughter.
- As I was walking up the stairs at the station, which were crowded with passengers getting off, a man was pushing his way through the people, angrily abusing everyone for being in the way and causing him to miss his train. Such colourful language among a sea of boring suits inspired me to giggle just a little.
- Crossing the road, I saw a boy drop his chewing gum in the bin, and turn around and walk promptly into a telegraph pole. He wasn't too hurt, but when he saw that I'd seen, he gave a sheepish, embarrassed smile and hurried away. I actually laughed out loud.
While this might seem like I'm being a horrible person, laughing at everyone else's misfortune. But the more I thought about it, I felt noticeably happier after witnessing these small calamities.
Sure, those people weren't having a great day, but for once I felt like I was thoroughly enjoying my train trip home.
And it got me thinking: is there really anything wrong with finding amusement in other people's minor misfortunes or accidents?
[I say minor, because there are obviously some large scale tragedies that shouldn't be funny on any level.]
There is an entire TV show dedicated to video clips if people doing stupid things and getting themselves hurt.
And the intention of that TV show is to make people laugh!
The lesson I've learnt, and the message I'm trying to get across here, is that no matter how shitty a day you might be having, your miserable experiences might be giving someone else a little bit of joy.
It may be at your personal expense, but you're giving back to the world, in a sense, aren't you?
I'm sure one day you'll laugh at someone else tripping over on the footpath, or running like a spastic to catch a bus that they've obviously already missed.
There, on that day, you will feel a little happier.
And so the karmic cycle continues.
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