Its an old adage that Laughter is the Best Medicine, but the growth of therapies using laughter to heal, backed by solid research, is no laughing matter.
From parks to workplaces, pubs to nursing homes, from Singapore to Sydney, and from Alaska to Africa, people are joining “Laughter Clubs” and doing “Laughter Yoga” in their droves. Only last week, than 400 people had plenty to laugh about at Spit West Reserve in Sydney where the group managed to comfortably beat the Guiness World Record for the biggest laughter yoga class and raised more than $25,000 for women’s cancer research in the process.
Studies have shown that a good hearty belly laugh not only helps elevate mood, but also reduce stress, lower blood pressure, boost the immune system and improve brain functioning, as well as protect the heart and reduce problems associated with conditions as diverse as strokes, arthritis and ulcers.
Have you ever noticed how laughter dissolves distressing emotions? You can’t feel anxious, angry, or sad when you’re laughing. Or how Laughter helps you relax and recharge? It reduces stress and increases energy, enabling you to stay focused and accomplish more.
Have you noticed how laughter can also make you be more spontaneous? Or how it gets you out of your head and helps you to let go of defensiveness, and forget judgments, criticisms, and doubts. We all feel our inhibitions roll away in tears as our fears are set aside and we find it easier to express our true feelings.
If you are in need of a good laugh, join us for Short Laughs Under the Stars! It’s another raucus night of FLICKERFEST’S very finest comedy flicks from this year’s 22nd Anniversary Festival, matched with organic curry and Rosnay wine at the Canowindra vineyard.
Organiser of the event, Sam Statham, summed up the ins and outs of the evening:
“Bring a rug and/or a folding chair to the Rosnay vineyard on Saturday 9 November, kicking off with gates opening at 6.00pm, dinner served at 6.30pm, and the films beginning at 7.30pm, and ending by 10.30pm. If you are joining us for dinner and/or planning to take a shuttle bus from Cowra or Canowindra, just make sure you RSVP to us by 5 November, by calling 63443215, or emailing info@rosnay.com.au. Otherwise, tickets are at the gate.
The cost is $35 for films and dinner, or $20 for just the films. The shuttle bus is $30 per person return from Cowra (departing the Rose Garden at 6pm), and $15 per person return from Canowindra (departing Gaskill Greens at 6pm). No BYO please as the venue is licenced. Kids are half price but must be accompanied by an adult as the films are rated MA15+. If it rains we will screen the films in the newly extended wine shed – which will be fun in itself – but definitely bring a folding chair in that case.“
Richard Statham, who is hosting the event on his lawn, added, “We at Rosnay Organic Wines are proud to sponsor FLICKERFEST, an initiative which has such a great reputation as bringing the finest in international short films to locations across the country that may not otherwise have access to such quality short films. Rosnay has been sponsoring Flickerfest for four years now, since 2010.”