A video that a woman posted to her Facebook page recently has probably come across your feeds on Facebook and even Twitter in the past few days. If you haven't seen it (and I strongly suggest that you do), watch it here.
Now I know that everything is not for everyone, but for those of you who loved this as much as I did, I think you understand.
So now that you may have an idea of what I am referring to, I think a "Thank you" is in order. I have heard about this video a lot since it went viral; I've seen a lot of shares, retweets, comments, likes and loves about this. And most all of it is overwhelmingly positive and a whole new collection of comics and memes have surfaced that are just fueling the fire of laughter. On Facebook alone there is a plethora of comments, 2.3M likes and reactions, and rounding up to almost 3.1M shares. For a video of the woman laughing in a Star Wars Chewbacca mask? How crazy is that? Not to mention the second video of all the swag she received from Kohls for the video (which you can also watch here), and I'm sure even more is coming. I wouldn't be surprised if she is already booked for a time-slot on Ellen.
But it really isn't about the popularity of it, Kohls or even Star Wars for that matter. It's about the "simple joys" according to the lady herself, Candice Payne. The video isn't a typical kind of humor, in fact, there is no "knock-knock" or "who's there" sight or earshot of it. No one is the butt of the joke, and there is simply nothing negative about it in the slightest. The way I see it, it was just a pure simple joy that she chose to share with her friends, and subsequently the world. Her laughter is indeed infectious, and most of you probably couldn't contain your own laughter or tears while watching it.
There is something about the video that gives me a feeling of pure happiness and in the best words I can think of, it is just simple and easy. In a world that is constantly challenging us (not a bad thing) and also can be very hateful (is a bad thing), it's easy to get stressed, tired and bogged down by it all. Especially in a – shall we say a very interesting – election year, all that is going on in our daily personal lives and then to add on the large scale of events that have occurred in the past few years…it's not surprising if you've become a little closed off and grumpy. But this video of "such a happy Chewbacca" added a little more light and random positivity to the world. It didn't need a setup, or shaving cream and a feather or a punchline – it was just easy. And sometimes when we are bogged down, easy is the best thing we can hope for.
So as we share in the belly laughter and tears with the "Chewbacca Mask Lady," let's take this as an easy lesson to find our own simple joys in life. We can find something that just makes us happy and share it to add a little more light and laughter back in our ever-changing world. So, thank you, Chewbacca Mask Lady or Candice…whatever you may go by now, haha. Thank you for an easy laugh, for sharing your simple joy and for inspiring us to find our own.