The Egalitarian Origins of Cinco de Mayo
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Assisted Living Residences May 2019 The Egalitarian Origins of Cinco de Mayo “From 1862-1867, the public memory of as California. The United States at the time Cinco de Mayo was forged in the American was embroiled in the Civil War, and many, west.” especially the Latino communities in – David Hayes-Bautista, UCLA California, saw the Mexican victory as a simultaneous victory for the Union army. Cinco de Mayo is a time for food, dancing, piñata-bashing, singing, mariachi music, The French regime that ordered the and other festive customs inspired by invasion of Mexico had actively supported Mexican culture. At Youville, during the Confederate army in their war efforts. Happy Hour, we will enjoy Mexican food Many feared that a French occupation of and live music performed by a mariachi Mexico would guarantee at least another band. If we could magically transport year of French support for the ourselves to a Mexican city, we’d be sure Confederates. This is how the Latino to see even bigger, wilder Cinco de Mayo community in the United States came to celebrations, right? associate the tyrannical French invaders in Mexico with the slave-owning southern Trick question! While Cinco de Mayo states. Both battle fronts became parts of commemorates an event that occurred a larger American war against tyranny and deep in the heart of Mexico, almost no inequality. When news arrived of the one in Mexico still celebrates it. The event Mexican victory, celebrations erupted that inspired Cinco de Mayo was The Battle throughout the west coast. of Puebla, which took place on May 5th, 1862. What happened there was fairly Today, Cinco de Mayo has evolved into a straightforward: a ragtag Mexican army general celebration of Mexican heritage managed to defeat an invading French within the United States. Most people army twice as large. celebrating are unaware of the egalitarian ideals that fueled the initial celebrations as Although Puebla is 630 miles from the news of the Mexican victory reached the nearest American border, the significance Latino population of California. of this unlikely victory was felt as far away Celebrate Cinco de Mayo with Mariachi Mexico Lindo at Happy Hour Thursday, May 2 at 3:30 PM We will celebrate Cinco de Mayo three days early this year! Joined by the talented musicians of Mariachi Mexico Lindo, our Happy Hour will include Mexican food, drinks and great music. Mariachi Mexico Lindo features lively Latin rhythms, authentic Mexican instruments and great vocal harmonies.
An Afternoon of Music with Nancy Day and Your Guide to the Kentucky Derby Drummer John George Tuesday, May 28 at 2:00 PM Alternatively referred to as “The Run for the Roses” or An accomplished pianist, singer and composer, Nancy “The Most Exciting Two Minutes in Sports,” the Day consistently thrills audiences with her dynamic Kentucky Derby is a 1.25 mile race for three-year-old performances. She draws from a wide-ranging repertoire thoroughbred horses. The Kentucky Derby draws an that includes jazz, country, ragtime, musical theater and average of 150,000 visitors each year, including residents, enchanting love songs. out-of-towners, celebrities, presidents, and even members of royal families. Happy Birthday! This year, The 145th Kentucky Derby will take place on Camille P. May 3 Saturday, May 4. At Youville, we will show live race Frances C. May 9 coverage from 5:00 PM - 7:30 PM. Tune in to root for Rita N. May 27 your favorite horse - or simply to marvel at all of the Dolores B. May 29 elaborate hats in the audience. Residents born in May are invited to lunch in the Private Dining Room to celebrate on Friday, Kentucky Derby History May 31 at 12:00 PM. The first Kentucky Derby race occurred on May 17th, 1875. Close to 10,000 people watched as 15 thoroughbred horses ran what was then a 1.5 mile course. In 1876, the length of the race was changed to 1.25 Shopping Trips miles. By the early 1900s, owners of winning Lexington Center / Walgreen’s Kentucky Derby horses started sending their winners to Thursday, May 2 & 23 run in the Preakness Stakes in Maryland and the Time: 1:00 PM Return: 2:30 PM Belmont Stakes in New York. In 1930, sportswriter Lexington Stop & Shop Charles Hatton coined the term “Triple Crown” in Friday, May 3 & 31 reference to the same horses running the three races Time: 9:30 AM Return: 11:00 AM consecutively. Burlington Market Basket Kentucky Derby Lingo Friday, May 10 & 24 • Mint Julep–– The Mint Julep is the official drink of Time: 9:30 AM Return: 11:00 AM the Kentucky Derby. It is an iced drink consisting of bourbon, mint, and a sweet syrup and is traditionally Bedford Stop & Shop served in a commemorative Kentucky Derby glass. Friday, May 17 Time: 9:30 AM Return: 11:00 AM • Burgoo–– A thick, meaty stew that is the traditional meal of the Kentucky Derby. Like Us On Facebook • Millionaire’s Row–– The premium seating area that Visit our Facebook page any time for updates, photos, houses all of the rich and famous Kentucky Derby videos and more. When you “like” us on Facebook, we guests during the races. will send you updates and links to our most recent news. Just search for Youville Assisted Living on Facebook and • Triple Crown–– A series of three races, the Kentucky click “like.” See you on the web! Derby, the Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes, that is run annually by a group of thoroughbred horses. 2
Monthly Highlights... stories. Rabbi Margalit will present stories from a wide Music Appreciation Lecture Series: variety of faith traditions including Christianity, Judaism, Gilbert & Sullivan Sufism, Hinduism, Buddhism and Native American with Richard Travers traditions. The course will explore themes such as Wednesday, May 1 at 2:00 PM spiritual quest, growth and challenge. Richard Travers presents a series of stimulating music lectures that combine audio selections, visuals, biography Acrylic Painting with Eddie Bruckner and a trove of music history and theory to top it all off. Friday, May 10 at 2:00 PM This lecture will pay tribute to the Victorian-era This 1.5 hour class will guide participants through a theatrical partnership between librettist W.S. Gilbert traditional landscape painting. Working with acrylic (1836-1911) and composer Arthur Sullivan paints, instructor Eddie Bruckner will demonstrate (1842-1900). This stalwart duo collaborated on fourteen different techniques during hands-on painting such as comic operas between 1871 and 1896, the best known the preparation of materials, color mixing and specific of which include H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance brush techniques. and The Mikado. 1919 at 100: A Lecture Series with Gary Hylander Broadway Seated Dance with Phyllis Rittner Prohibition Wednesday, May 1, 8, 15, 22 & 29 at 9:30 AM Saturday, May 11 at 2:00 PM Broadway Seated Dance is a music and dance program After years of contention between “drys” and “wets,” the for older adults who love the upbeat tunes from movie 18th Amendment (Prohibition) became the law of the musicals, Broadway and the popular performers dazzling land. The so-called “Noble Experiment” turned audiences between the 1930s and 1960s. This program law-abiding citizens into outlaws. Mobsters built a includes a gentle warm up, easy-to-follow body bloody empire on beer and alcohol. New words such as movements and a relaxing cool down. The exercises are “hit-man,” “speakeasy” and “booze” muscled their way designed to improve cardiovascular function, range of into the vernacular. Unpopular and unenforceable, the motion, muscle tone, posture, circulation and flexibility. 18th Amendment was repealed in 1933. Be sure to join us on Wednesday mornings! ArtMatters Presents . . . Ballroom Dancing with Michael Winward Illusion & Escher Tuesday, May 7 at 2:00 PM Tuesday, May 14 at 2:00 PM With instructor Michael Winward leading, dancers of all Throughout history, artists such as Da Vinci and M.C. abilities are able to get moving in a supportive and joyful Escher have explored illusion in famous artwork. Visual environment. Inspired by the idea that people of all ages art styles like Anamorphic art and Op art continued to and abilities should have opportunities to dance, challenge the eye in new ways. This presentation will Mr. Winward has led social Ballroom and Latin dance focus particularly on the works of Escher, a 20th-century workshops throughout Greater Boston, witnessing Dutch artist who was a master and innovator of illusion. firsthand the many benefits that dancing provides for the Drumming Circle with SoulWorks Rhythm “Over-55” community. Dance encourages good posture, Monday, May 20 at 2:00 PM offers low-impact, cardiovascular exercise and connects Experience the exhilaration of communal drumming! people through the skills of leading and following. For centuries, many cultures have made drumming a central part of communal life. Recently, drumming has Stories of the Spirit from Around The World been associated with therapeutic benefits like lower blood A Discussion Series with Rabbi Natan Margalit pressure and stress relief. SoulWorks Rhythm will provide Wednesday, May 8 at 2:00 PM an array of drums and guide participants through The world has many spiritual traditions that have traditional drumming techniques. imparted a treasure trove of delightful and enlightening 3
May 2019 9:30 Broadway Seated Dance 1 9:30 Stretch & Flex 2 3 9:30 Stretch & Flex 4 9:30 Balance Challenge 10:30 Centering Prayer 10:30 Programs Planning Mtg. 11:00Fatima Rosary Group 9:30 Shopping Trip: Lex. S & S 2:00 Music Lecture Series 1:00 Trans. to Lexington Ctr. 12:00Computer 101 w/ Riya Transportation Hours Country Store 10:15 Flower Arranging PS Salon Hours w/ Richard Travers 2:00 Resident Managment Mtg. 2:00 Jazz Songwriters Series Monday through Friday Hours 1:30 Blood Pressure Clinic Thursday & Friday 3:30 Black Jack 3:30 Celebrate Cinco de Mayo w/ Ross Petot 8:00 AM- 2:00 PM Monday, Wednesday & Friday 2:00 Laughter Yoga w/ Juliet 9:00 AM - 2:30 PM 7:00 Documentary Movie: w/ Mexico Lindo @ Happy Hour 3:00 Meet Dori at Springtime Spritz. 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM 3:15 The Body Connection w/ Liz The Case for Christ 7:00 Music & Musical Film: 5:00 Kentucky Derby on TV 7:00 Movie: Beetlejuice Guys and Dolls 9:30 Broadway Seated Dance 8 10 9 2:00 Historical Lecture Series 11 9:30 Balance Challenge 10:00 Downton Abbey: Season51 9:30 Balance Challenge 6 9:30 Stretch & Flex 7 10:30 Centering Prayer 9:30 Stretch & Flex 9:30 Shopping Trip: Episode 1 10:30 Low Vision Support Group 11:00 Chaplet of Divine Mercy 11:30 Lunch Trip: Margarita’s 10:30 Nurse’s Chat 1919 at 100: Prohibition Burlington Market Basket 2:00 Pianist Fr. Pat sponsored by 2:00 May Jeopardy Trivia 2:00 Ballroom Dancing 2:00 Stories of the Spirit Around 2:00 Profiles of Women in 10:15 Flower Arranging w/ Gary Hylander the Social Justice Committee 3:30 Bingo w/ Michael Winward the World w/ Rabbi Natan Margalit History: Catherine the Great 3:30 Afternoon Concert with 2:00 Acrylic Painting Class 7:00 Classic Movie: 7:00 Movie: The Magic of Belle 3:15 PBS Special w/ Kathleen 3:30 Black Jack w/ Richard Brabander New England Seventh Day w/ Eddie Bruckner Brother Orchid Isle From Jesus to Christ 7:00 Documentary Movie: 4:00 Happy Hour Adventist Church Choir 3:30 Farewell Tea for Liz 7:00 Movie: Crazy Rich Asians Ancient Mysteries: 7:00 Music & Musical Film: 7:00 Movie: Stan & Ollie 7:00 Movie: The Favourite Lost Castles of England Les Miserables 12 13 9:30 Stretch & Flex 14 9:30 Broadway Seated Dance15 16 9:30 Balance Challenge 17 9:30 Stretch & Flex 18 Happy Mother’s Day 9:30 Balance Challenge 9:30 Stretch & Flex 11:00 Chaplet of Divine Mercy 10:30 Centering Prayer 9:30 Shopping Trip: 10:30Cooking with Christie 10:00 Downton Abbey: Season 1 10:15 Creative Corner: 2:00 Forever Fit 2:00 ArtMatters presents... 2:00 Verdi Opera Series: Bedford Stop & Shop 1:30 Bonus Bingo Episode 2 Soul Collaging 4:00 The Rat Pack Happy Hour Illusion & Escher w/ Erika Reitshamer 10:15 Nutrition Talk w/ Sandra Peck 1:30 Matinee Movie: 2:30 Celebrate Mother’s Day 2:00 Fall Prevention 7:00 Music & Musical Film: 3:15 PBS Special w/ Kathleen 3:30 Black Jack 1:30 Caring Canines Spartacus: Part I w/ Pianist Dick Carpentier w/ Aedan Ford Godspell From Jesus to Christ 7:00 Documentary Movie: 3:15 Flower Arranging 3:00 Afternoon Walk 7:00 Classic Movie: Paris When it 3:30 Bingo Legend to Legend Sizzles 7:00 Movie: Billy Elliot 7:00 Movie: Slumdog Millionaire 7:00 Movie: Colette 3:30 Springtime Spritzers 7:00 Movie: Spartacus: Part I 9:30 Broadway Seated Dance 19 9:30 Balance Challenge 20 9:30 Stretch & Flex 21 10:30 Centering Prayer 22 23 9:30 Balance Challenge 24 9:30 Stretch & Flex 27 11:00 Chaplet of Divine Mercy 10:30 Lunch Trip: 9:30 Stretch & Flex 9:30 Shopping Trip: 10:30Gardening Club 10:00 Downton Abbey: Season 1 10:15 Cranium Crunchers 2:00 Historical Lecture Series: Not Your Average Joe’s 1:00 Trans. to Lexington Ctr. Burlington Market Basket 1:30 Bonus Bingo Episode 3 2:00 Drumming Circle w/ Paolo di Gregorio 1:30 Documentary Movie: 2:00 Forever Fit! 2:00 Self-Care Secrets: 1:30 Matinee Movie: 2:00 Lexington POPS Concert w/ SoulWorks Rhythm 3:15 PBS Special w/ Kathleen Sinatra: To Be Frank 4:00 Happy Hour An Introduction to Ben-Hur: Part I in Chapel 3:30 Bingo From Jesus to Christ 3:30 Black Jack 7:00 Music & Musical Film: Self-Care Techniques 3:00 Afternoon Walk 7:00 Movie: Spartacus: Part II 7:00 Movie: The Blind Side 7:00 Movie: Three Billboards 7:00 Documentary Movie: The Phantom of the Opera 3:15 Flower Arranging 3:30 Springtime Spritzers Outside Ebbing Missouri Frank Sinatra: The Man and 7:00 Movie: Miracles from Heaven 7:00 Movie: Ben-Hur: Part I 26 27 9:30 Stretch & Flex 28 9:30 Broadway Seated Dance29 9:30 Stretch & Flex 30 9:30 Balance Challenge 31 Memorial Day 10:30 Centering Prayer 9:30 Shopping Trip: 10:00 Downton Abbey: Season 1 9:30 Balance Challenge 10:30 Let’s Talk Food 11:00 Lunch Trip: Castle Island 10:30 Current Events w/ Pam Lexington Stop & Shop Episode 4 11:30 Memorial Day BBQ 11:00 Chaplet of Divine Mercy 2:00 Food Around the World: 12:00 Birthday Luncheon Manicures w/ Joanne 1:30 Documentary Movie: 2:00 Classical Pianist 2:00 Renaissance Series: DaVinci: 2:00 An Afternoon of Music w/ Dan MacRae 2:00 Afternoon Tea & Tales Monday, May 20 A Travelers Guide to Italy MinKyung Oh “The Renaissance Man” w/ Nancy Day 4:00 Memorial Day Happy Hour 3:15 Flower Arranging 4:15 PM - 5:45 PM 3:30 Black Jack 7:00 Classic Movie: Ben-Hur: 3:30 Bingo & John Georges 7:00 Documentary Movie: 7:00 Music & Musical Film: 7:00 Movie: The Iron Lady Part II 7:00 Movie: The King’s Speech 7:00 Movie: The Red Shoes A Travelers Guide to Italy Oklahoma!
The Origins of Memorial Day PBS Special: From Jesus to Christ On Monday, May 27, we will usher in the summer with Kathleen Kelleher with Memorial Day. Though it is now a national Tuesday, May 7, 14 & 21 at 3:15 PM holiday synonymous with barbecue, parades and This PBS series examines historical and archeological honoring veterans, Memorial Day owes its beginning discoveries related to the life of Jesus of Nazareth. How to a series of disparate commemorative gestures shortly does modern scholarship influence the impressions we after the Civil War. These early events, both above and have of Jesus from The Bible? What was the historical below the Mason-Dixon line, demonstrated a context in which Jesus preached? What can we know remarkable sense of moral obligation on the parts of about him based on the gospels and other writings that their organizers. have survived through history? Biblical scholars and historians will piece together theories of how Jesus One such event involved a group of women in actually lived using historical clues in this dynamic Columbus, Mississippi. On an afternoon in 1866, the PBS special. women, meeting together in a house, decided to bedeck the graves of both confederate and union soldiers with Community Outings flowers in a nearby cemetery. Their inclusion of the graves of Union soldiers inspired Francis Miles Finch’s Margarita’s Mexican Restaurant popular poem, “The Blue and the Grey,” published in Wednesday, May 8 the Atlantic Monthly in 1867. Some historians credit Depart: 11:30 AM the southern women and their symbolic gesture of Return: 2:30 PM Cost: $ for lunch reconciliation with the origination of Memorial Day. Celebrate Cinco de Mayo with delicious Mexican food Another early commemoration event took place in at Margarita’s! Charleston, South Carolina in 1865. During the war, the south had been keeping union soldiers as prisoners Not Your Average Joe’s within the walls of a horse racing track. Many perished, Wednesday, May 22 and the Confederate soldiers hastily buried the bodies Depart: 10:30 AM in a large, unmarked grave. After the whites fled town, Return: 1:30 PM Cost: $ for lunch black freed men, in their first days of freedom, devoted Not Your Average Joe’s features an expansive menu with themselves to the proper burial and consecration of innovative twists on classic pub fare. There is something the dead Union soldiers. At the entrance to the race for everyone, including a large dessert menu! track they installed a sign reading “Martyrs of the Race Course.” The freed men also held an immense Castle Island memorial procession, with some 10,000 people, Wednesday, May 29 and scattered flowers over the graves of the soldiers. Depart: 11:00 AM Return: 2:30 PM Cost: $ for lunch In 1868, Memorial Day (then known as “Decoration We will celebrate the spring season with a picnic lunch at Day”) became official. General John Logan drafted Castle Island. Find a shady spot under a tree and enjoy General Order #11, known as the Memorial Day order. a view of the harbor, or take a walk around the island and explore the ruins of the old naval forts that have Today, Memorial Day falls on the last Monday of May, been on this site since the 1600s. Did you know that the and the entire long weekend marks the beginning of island got its name because every fort located on it was summer vacation. At Youville we will honor our informally known as “The Castle?” To this day, Castle veterans and greet summer as we have always done, Island remains the oldest continuously fortified site in with our traditional Memorial Day BBQ lunch. British North America. 6
Grow as a Person Opportunities Celebrating Mother’s Day Performance & Lecture Series: On Sunday, May 12th, children of all ages will inundate Jazz Songwriters phone lines and postal routes with sentiments of maternal with Ross Petot affection. Mothers will be treated to surprise visits, gifts, Saturday, May 4 at 2:00 PM cards, letters, flowers, dinners, and hopefully a sense of Starting in the 20s, music for stage and heartfelt appreciation. broadcasting introduced a host of great Mother’s Day is generally a happy, relaxed spring songwriters to the American public. George Gershwin, holiday, and we can thank Anna Jarvis for its Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, Duke Ellington and others establishment. Jarvis spent ten years in the early 20th began to create the Great American Songbook which century trying to get America to appreciate the became a perfect resource for improvising musicians and irreplaceable influence of all mothers. Her campaign had established a truly American style and sound. nothing to do with self-interest, as Jarvis was not a mother This concert series will focus on these great composers, herself. Instead, she was honoring the wishes of her own and explore the musical characteristics that make them late mother, who during her lifetime had expressed the unique, distinctive, and irresistible for the improvising desire for such a holiday. jazz player. Her efforts paid off in 1914, when Congress officially Verdi Opera Lecture Series with Erika Reitshamer dedicated the second Sunday of May as the new national Un Ballo In Maschera holiday for mothers. Jarvis never quite got over the rapid Wednesday, May 15 at 2:00 PM commercialization of Mother’s Day that followed so soon Un Ballo In Maschera is based on the real life assassination after its creation. She became appalled by the prevalence of King Gustav III of Sweden in 1792. Gustav is a ruler of pre-printed greeting cards, believing that they were a plagued by conscience and a deep sense of professional poor replacement for a handwritten, personalized duty, but he has a guilty secret: he is in love with Amelia, letter. “A printed card means nothing except that you are the wife of his closest friend. He also has enemies who are too lazy to write to the woman who has done more for brewing a murderous conspiracy. you than anyone in the world,” she once wrote. Jarvis began to actively protest such commercialization, Lecture Series: Protest & Public Discourse in America and was even arrested once on her own holiday for Protest & Reform in Antebellum America disturbing the peace. with Paolo di Gregorio Tuesday, May 21 at 2:00 PM Jarvis was extremely active to the end of her own life, The right to protest was so important to the founding never ceasing in her efforts to restore the Mother’s Day fathers that they enshrined it in our Constitution. holiday to its intended, noncommercial state. Over the course of American history, protest movements Today, no holiday is free from commercialization, and and public action have sought to create a more equitable greeting cards hardly seem like a reason for protest. Still, and just United States. The right to vocally and publicly Jarvis would have been pleased to see that Mother’s Day is express frustrations with social or governmental structures primarily about honoring and remembering our mothers, remains vitally important today. In this lecture, Professor and acknowledging our gratitude to the women who di Gregorio discusses the far-reaching social and helped make us who we are. economic change that occurred during the first decades of the 19th century. The reform and protest movements We will celebrate Mother’s Day at Youville with a special of the antebellum period reshaped American society and Mother’s Day meal. Be sure to complete the reservation set the stage for the dramatic upheaval that the Civil War forms placed in your mailboxes so that we can would bring to the country. accommodate all family members and guests. 7
Save the Dates... Transportation Services Programs Planning Meeting Transportation Hours w/ Lead Programs Assistant, Simona Granfone Monday through Friday Thursday, May 2 at 10:30 AM 8:00 AM - 2:00 PM The fee for transportation is $10.00 for Lexington and Resident Management Meeting $20.00 for surrounding communities. Please see the w/ Youville Directors Programs Department with any questions. We will Thursday, May 2 at 2:00 PM make every effort to accommodate your wishes, Nurse’s Chat but please understand that no transportation can be w/ Director of Wellness, Kathryn Carlino guaranteed with less than 48 hours notice. Thursday, May 9 at 10:30 AM Let’s Talk Food Programs / Menu Hotline... w/ Director of Dining Services, Dan MacRae Have you ever wondered whether your favorite program Tuesday, May 28 at 10:30 AM is on the schedule for the day? Would you like to know in advance what the daily menu choices are? Now you can hear a recorded list of the daily programs as well as the menu for lunch and dinner at Youville Place. Simply call Country Store (781) 761-1334 directly, or call the Reception Desk Store Hours and the receptionist will connect you. Monday 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM Wednesday 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM Friday 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM Store Volunteers: Youville Place Management Team Sr. Theresa R., Sr. Dolores B. & Brigid S. Nicole Breslin CEO & President Joanne Scianna COO Tom Landry Director of Human Resources Kathleen Kelleher Director of Mission & Spiritual Care Mission Paula Desmond-Wallace Regional Controller We are a Catholic health ministry, providing Katie Blanchard Director of Programs healing and care for the whole person, in service Susan Snow Director of Marketing to all in our communities. Kathryn Carlino, RN Director of Wellness Our Heritage Dan MacRae Director of Dining Services Youville Assisted Living Residences are Bob Salamanca Director of Environmental communities grounded in the spirit of Services St. Marguerite d’Youville, foundress of the Sisters Virginia Ellis Director of Community Life of Charity of Montreal, “Grey Nuns.” Trusting in Yanira Motto Director of God’s love, each community serves all those in need Community Relations with compassion and respect.
Get fit. Stay sharp. Age well. © May 2019 “You Had to Be There”: How Laughter Binds Us Together The last time you walked into a room full of laughing people, you most likely searched the room for a visible source of hilarity. You may have asked someone to explain the joke. Of course, people were too busy laughing to explain it, so they gave you the usual explanation: “You had to be there.” More often than not, there is no joke it all. Everyday laughter is rarely about comedy, and in fact, all about “being there.” In the words of psychiatrist Robert Provine, laughter is a “social vocalization that binds people together.” It does this in a variety of ways. Laughter can serve as a simple expression of recognition – for example, the “oh, I know what you mean” laugh that we often share to create a moment of mutual understanding. We laugh courteously, apologetically, self-consciously, and often for completely mysterious reasons. But we rarely laugh when we are by ourselves. Laughter can come into existence with only the smallest pretext of shared experience between people. There is nothing particularly funny about the time you bumped into your best friend on the sidewalk. But the two of you couldn’t help but laugh. Would you have laughed as hard, or at all, if the person you bumped into was a stranger? Robert Provine has analyzed this “togetherness” trigger that qualifies most laughter. Provine and his students at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, took notes about the everyday laughter they encountered around campus. They recorded information such as the gender of the person laughing, the gender of the person who caused the laughter, and the comments made just before the laughter started. Physical More often than not, these comments were just unfunny statements on the surface. “It was nice to meet you, too!” and “Have a nice day!” for example, triggered laughter. Jokes only occurred rarely. Often it was the speakers who laughed after their own comments to others. As you might guess, the students did not find very many solitary people laughing to themselves. Cognitive Provine concluded that “the critical stimulus for a laugh is another person, not a joke.” The Physical Effects of Laughter Strong social connections have been shown to safeguard physical health, especially as we age. Nutritional The benefits we derive from laughter are similar to the benefits we get from social interaction. Here are a few examples of the physical effects of laughter: • When we laugh, we release feel-good endorphins that have been found to Spiritual continued
reduce physical pain. Journalist Norman Cousins, after being hospitalized for a spinal condition, incorporated laughter into his personal recovery program. He found that watching the Marx brothers every night made him laugh so much that afterward he was able to sleep for at least two Get fit. Stay sharp. Age well.© hours without feeling any pain. • Laughter inhibits the stress hormone, cortisol, which has adverse effects Balance Challenge on immune functioning. Laughter causes the immune system to produce Broadway Seated Dance more T cells, immune proteins and antibodies. Forever Fit • By increasing heart rate, laughter benefits our cardiovascular system in a Stretch & Flex way similar to exercise. In one study, 300 participants split into two Ballroom Dancing groups that watched two different movies. Half of the group watched a comedy (There’s Something About Mary) while the other half watched a drama (Saving Private Ryan). The group that watched the comedy had Yellow squash is high in vitamins A, B6 a 30-40% increased dilation in their blood vessels compared with the and C, folate, magnesium, fiber, group who watched the drama. riboflavin, phosphorus, potassium and manganese. That is an impressive bundle Healthy Laughter of nutrients! Cardiologists at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore have found that people with heart disease were less likely to have a sense of Catholic Mass humor than their heart-healthy contemporaries. Of the 300 participants Great Courses on DVD surveyed, half had healthy hearts while the other half had a history of heart The Historical Jesus disease. The participants answered questions examining the extent to which Stories of the Spirit humor played a role in their everyday lives. In particular, those who laughed w/ Rabbi Natan Margalit or used humor to cope with stressful situations were less likely to have heart disease. Verdi Opera Lecture Series Dr. Michael Miller, one of the cardiologists involved in the study, believes w/ Erika Reitshamer that incorporating laughter into a daily routine might be as important for History Lecture Series: 1919 at 100 heart health as diet and exercise. There are numerous “laughing groups” with Gary Hylander operating in many U.S. cities with the aim of spreading the benefits of History of Protest in America laughter to their practitioners. There is even an entire branch of yoga w/ Paolo di Gregorio devoted to communal laughing. Led by a certified instructor, participants ArtMatters Presents . . . of laughter yoga engage in a combination of physical movements and Illusion & Escher coordinated, voluntary laughter. The atmosphere builds on the Great Songwriter Series w/ Ross Petot infectiousness of laughter and playful behavior. Even if you went into the Music Appreciation Lecture Series session in a less than elated mood, chances are by the end, your laughter will w/ Richard Travers have evolved into something genuine. If you are interested in participating in laughter yoga, you are in luck! Juliette Pellicane, Lead Programs Assistant at Youville House in Cambridge, is a certified Laughter Yoga Instructor. She will lead an introductory laughter yoga class at Youville Place on Friday, May 3 at 2:00 PM. Assisted Living Residences Youville House • 1573 Cambridge Street • Cambridge, MA 02138 • 617.491.1234 Youville Place • 10 Pelham Road • Lexington, MA 02421 • 781.861.3535 • www.youvilleassistedliving.org
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