Laughter is a powerful shrinking agent.  When a problem appears to be too big, joking about the situation makes the problem seem smaller.  When people are uptight, finding something silly to laugh about reduces the tension.  Unfortunately, laughing at a person (or group of people) also makes him look smaller. That not only hurts the person who is belittled, it poisons the atmosphere for everyone within hearing range.

Laughing is actually good for your health.  A good laugh refreshes the body as well as the spirit.

There have been times when someone confided in me, expressing grief over a loss or describing an incident that had hurt some much that talking about it brought tears to both of our eyes.  As painful as these experiences were, I always felt good about them afterward.  There have been other times that I have embarrassed someone by laughing at them.  I don’t feel good about those times.

The key isn’t the laughing or crying, it is the...