Humor

In this chapter, you’ll find many things that make you smile — small reminders that lightness is a form of intelligence. When we laugh, we activate areas in the prefrontal cortex that create distance from the moment. A laugh is a little cognitive reframe, a shift in perspective, a brief instant in which we can smile at ourselves.

At the same time, the body releases a whole range of good hormones. And especially when we laugh together, closeness arises — we feel connected. Shared laughter reduces tension, diffuses conflict, creates a sense of belonging, and builds trust.

Humor allows us to perceive and live with both pain and absurdity at once. Maybe that’s why it’s such a thorn in the side of totalitarian regimes.