“I’ll need a few groceries at home.” My sweet 96-year old mother had taken a fall, and I’d brought her home for the weekend to recuperate with Don and me.

“We can stop for that on the way to your place,” I responded. “What do you need?”

“Let’s see. Grapes, a nectarine or two, and lettuce.”

“What kind of lettuce do you like?”

“Oh, what’s the name … it has long leaves and starts with an ‘F’. I can’t think of the name, but you’ll know it when you see it,” she assured me.

I parked the car and walked into the produce section of the Stop ‘N Go market. Grapes, check. Nectarines, check. I wracked my brain trying to come up with a lettuce that began with the letter “F”.  Then it hit me.

I paid the bill and returned to the car, giving Mom the bag and her change.

“You know that lettuce that starts with an ‘F’?” I asked. “Could that be Romaine?” It was. She chuckled, and I roared with laughter. So, Fromaine it is!

Our friend, Dave, was helping Don by power washing the house. I’d gotten home from taking Mom back just about the time the guys needed lunch. I made tuna sandwiches and served up Parmesan Crisps (yumm!) and grapes for them. Later that day our friend Susan arrived to spend a few days helping me pack–again. What a friend! When I started preparing dinner, a chicken and mushroom dish, I recalled that Susan is allergic to mushrooms.

Looking around for a good alternative, I saw one of my tupperware containers in the fridge. While I didn’t recognize the meal that was inside, it looked good and fresh. Besides, my mind has been in a bit of a whirl around moving, so I figured I’d just forgotten what was in that tub. I took out about half of the leftovers and put them in a bowl to heat.

As Susan and I sat on the porch glider at the end of the work day, Don and Dave joined us. Dave was eating out of a tupperware container before biking home (a fireman, he eats regularly to maintain his energy). It looked familiar.

“Oh no!” I gulped. “That’s YOUR food! Dave, I took out half of your meal for Susan because she’s allergic to mushrooms. We haven’t eaten yet; let me get the rest for you!”

“No worries,” he said graciously. “Grace has dinner ready at home. This is enough for now.” And indeed, Susan enjoyed half of the meal Grace had prepared for Dave that day!

Sometimes you just have to laugh or cry, and that was a day for lots of laughter at our mindless mistakes. I’m glad our God has given us a sense of humor, that He doesn’t love us any less when we mess up, and that He encourages healthy joy.

A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. Proverbs 17:22

What’s the most recent situation in which you laughed at something silly you did?