I love to “google.” Whenever a question of any sort pops up I just go to the current source of all wisdom… Google. There are many people googling and it’s tons of fun. For instance, have you ever wondered where certain phrases originated? Or who thought up the idea of instant breakfasts? Who was the brainchild of no-lick stamps? When did we first start drinking coffee?

Anything, and I do mean anything, you want to know is available in literally seconds from the information highway known as the internet. All you have to do is google your way there.

Recently I wondered where the phrase, “Are we having fun yet?” originated. Upon googling, I found out that it was created by a cartoon strip character named Zippy in the 80s.

This question came up because a friend treated me to Disney World recently where we hung out for a couple of days. What fun! We just let our “little kids” inside, out to play and had a ball. When was the last time you allowed yourself to do something just for the fun of it?

I’m strongly convinced that we tend to take life way too seriously. We should be playing more, smiling a whole lot more and having oodles of fun every day. Where does it say that we have to be all serious to get any real business done? Actually, it’s been proven that when people have fun at what they’re doing, they do it better, easier and more efficiently. Playing, smiling and laughing all add years to our lives and lightness to our souls.

Comedian Judy Carter has a wonderful slogan, “Turn your problems into punchlines.” She travels around the country speaking to corporations and organizations about how to create more fun in the workplace through humor. You go, Judy!

The world doesn’t need “saving”… it needs bellylaughs! It needs to have its people find the fun in everything they do and emphasize, encourage and continue co-creating it with others. Tuning into the fun factor in everything you do makes you a people magnet. We all like to be around happy people. It’s our nature, and I believe, our destiny to be happy and to spread cheer wherever we go. Have you ever noticed how total strangers will play with you if you give them a chance? All it takes is a little smile and your natural sense of humor popping up and voilá you’ve found a new playbuddy to have some fun with.

What a totally different world this would be if we began our day with a smile in our heart and on our face and clicked on our sense of humor before we walked out the door. I sometimes like to make a game of it. I deliberately look for someone to have fun with.

Laughter is contagious. The beautiful thing about this is a laughing person cannot stay in a blue mood for very long. You can’t be laughing and grumpy at the same time.

This is the time of year to express gratitude and be thankful for the things that are important in your life. I am so grateful for the ability to laugh and express joy with others, to be able to share funny moments and watch the glow that lights up people’s faces when they feel the “fun” in something. It is one of the most precious moments in life when you can see happiness emerging where it was not evident before. Because joy is truly our natural state of being.

As very dear friends of ours, Jerry and Esther Hicks have inscribed on the back of their delicious new motor coach, “Life is supposed to be fun!”

Are you having fun yet?