Selected Columns
Kaleidoscope of the Heart: Laughing in the face of adversity
Lately when I hear the word "America," I associate it with the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Okinawa Prefecture or the Japan-U.S. security alliance, but recently I came across the first news in a while that made me think, "How American!"
The report said that one year after the "Miracle on the Hudson," an incident in which a commercial passenger plane struck a flock of geese and was ditched in the Hudson River in New York without a single loss of life, crew and passengers of the flight had gotten together for a reunion. What was surprising was the place they assembled: the location where the aircraft was ditched. The report said that some 200 people aboard a ferry toasted each other at the hour the plane went down. Needless to say, the pilot, Capt. Chesley B. Sullenberger III, took part.
No matter how many lives were saved, it remains a fact that everyone faced death at some point or other. I doubt anyone would be surprised if they heard that there were many people, including the pilot, who were suffering from the scars of mental trauma from the accident.
In this respect, one cannot help but be surprised by the resilience of the passengers and crew in being able to travel to the scene where the plane went down just a year after the accident. And what's more, they reportedly made their toast with Grey Goose vodka -- apparently referring to the birds that disabled the plane's engines. Some people may have seen this as black humor, but they probably took it in their stride.
When watching American films, it's common for the characters to make humorous comments when they have a close call. In the medical drama series "ER," doctors and nurses often make jokes -- a fact that brings home the cultural differences between Japan and the U.S. In Japan such joking would probably be criticized with the comment: "What an imprudent thing to say in front of a seriously ill patient!"
I'm not implying that jokes surpass solemnity or moderation under any circumstance. Nevertheless, it is important to try laughing at the times when we are most downcast. There are no doubt times when this enables us to stop straining and think, "OK, let's give it a go," thereby bringing ourselves to the next step.
I don't handle serious atmospheres well, and in my consultation room, I laugh when something is funny. There are times where a patient with serious depression might say to me, "Actually something funny happened," and go on to share some humorous episode. When that happens I laugh particularly loudly. I am not making light of the patient by any means; rather, I am trying to find something funny using an eye for humor and, in my own way, trying to show respect to the person who is telling me the story.
We laugh together and respect each other by telling them, "Your story is funny!" Without going as far as the United States, an applicable Japanese proverb comes to mind: "Fortune arrives through a merry gate." (By Rika Kayama, psychiatrist)
Click here for the original Japanese story
(Mainichi Japan) January 24, 2010