February 23, 2011

Wing Tip #11: From Tragedy to Comedy?

"My mother wanted us to understand that the tragedies of your life one day have the potential to be comic stories the next." -- Nora Ephron

I have certainly had those moments when something dire turned to hilarious after time had lapsed.  I remember losing my temper once in the college dorm because no one was helping me clean.  In a fit of frustration I threw all the books off our bookshelf and stormed out of the room slamming the door behind me.  Our room full of girls silenced.  

Not knowing where I should go and feeling immediately ashamed, I sat down in the hallway.  After awhile, my friend rapped on the door.

"Is it safe to come out?" she asked.  

That was all it took to get me laughing. 

What about you?  Has anything that seemed important in the moment become comical in time?


  1. Thankfully, when my husband and I argue it often ends with one of us just laughing. Usually me...because I'm being a baby and it will finally hit me like a ton of bricks. "Hey, you are being a baby...cut it out!"

  2. Yes, my worst tragedies in middle school would make the funniest stories if I turned them into fiction.

  3. Oh my gosh: the days when I taught middle school, for sure.

  4. Time has that way of putting our experiences into different perspectives ... thankfully!

  5. I can remember a time when a wardrobe malfunction (falling bra straps) distracted me so much I screwed up at a singing performance in school. Now, it's hilarious. Back then, I thought the world would end!

