the most serious


POISON Antidote


H


ey, here’s a riddle for you: what’s the difference between a hippo and a Zippo?


Wait—what? This is ridiculous! We


don’t have time for silly riddles. We have to get down to business. After all, April is upon us. We must not forget the bitter description written by the great poet T.S. Eliot in the very first line of his poem, The Waste Land: “April is the cruelest month.” Apart from the obvious reality that


Eliot never spent July in Texas or January in North Dakota, we do have to acknowl- edge he has a point. Surely, if there is one day of every year that is regarded with fear and loathing by every adult American, it’s April 15th. Only Eliot’s criticism of April— one he wants us to adopt as well—has nothing to do with taxes. Rather what he is describing is the beginning of spring. That’s right, Eliot expresses distaste for everything—and most especially the flow- ers—that are characteristic of April. T.S. Eliot wants us to regard one of earth’s greatest, most beautiful, joyous seasons with serious, judgmental scorn. If, as you think about this, you find


yourself asking if the blustery, uncertain quality of springtime outweighs its new- ness and beauty, the poet has won. He has made you serious about April; and because the ultimate intent of the poet is to be taken seriously, he has succeeded. This is a pervasive reality: the more seriously we regard something—or someone, the less joy we feel. Also it’s important to realize that human beings naturally tend to as- sume the more serious someone is, the more important that person is. Have you ever known someone who can walk into a room where people are laughing and that person’s mere presence washes away all the levity (you don’t have anybody like that in your family or where you work, do you)? Isn’t it also true that some people cultivate and emanate an atmosphere of perpetual seriousness around themselves as way of making themselves seem impor- tant?


Reflecting on this brings forth several 14th Anniversary Edition


observations, the first being that just be- cause someone is quite serious doesn’t mean they are all that important. Those familiar with the Christopher Robin stories know that Eeyore the donkey is constant- ly serious, but Winnie the Pooh—who is seldom all that serious, even in a crisis—is far more important. Second, seriousness raises the level of anxiety experienced by those around the serious person. Consider the insightful proverb “when Momma ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy”: this is really another way of saying that unhappy people (who are pretty much universally serious) create anxiety in those around them, and that anxiety causes the rest of us to be un- happy—and serious.


A third, and perhaps most important,


truth is that seriousness becomes toxic. Indeed chronically serious people tend to become poisonous within their relation- ships and to the health of those around them. Seriousness is seriously poisonous. Perhaps the degree to which seriousness by itself is toxic is yet to be determined scientifically—and to be sure the amount of exposure to seriousness a person can endure varies by individual—but very few


and the


patients being treated for chronic mental imbalances come from light-hearted, play- ful environments. Dr. Don, a school counselor with impeccable credentials and a wealth of experience, was admitted to a clinic with profound depression and suicidal ideation. During his stay, he confided to a chaplain that over a six month period he had be- come dependent upon tranquilizers, his wife had left him and he was on a mental health furlough from his job. When asked if he knew the cause of these painful changes, Don readily said, “Oh, my old boss retired. He was a great guy. Everybody loved working for him. But my new boss never smiles. For him nothing is ever good enough or even acceptable. Trying to please him at first made me miserable. Now it’s unbearable.” If seriousness is this much of a threat


to our well-being, we seriously need to know how to deal with it. So thank good- ness for April! April isn’t just the tumultuous heart of


springtime, it’s the one magnificent month with a day devoted to joy, frivolity and playfulness: April Fools’ Day! If seriousness is a toxin (and it is in fact deadly) then the


Christen Duke, ANP-C


www.RobinhoodIntegrativeHealth.com Christen Duke, ANP-C


Christen Duke, ANP is a board certified Adult Nurse Practitioner with over 18 years experience in adult medicine. Using a natural, holistic approach, she encourages and assists people to maximize their health through optimal nu- trition, supplementation, and bio- identical hormone replacement. She continues to expand her mas- tery of other integrative issues. Christen’s goal for her patients is for them to live healthy lives feel- ing their best.


336.768.3335 April 2018 17


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