Then he snickered. And so did the audience, uneasily.
And then he giggled. And so did the audience.
And then he started laughing, and he laughed and laughed until he almost fell off the stool, doubled over. And for many minutes, the audience followed suit, some laughing so hard the tears streamed from their eyes.
The laughter rolled over the room like huge waves. No one knew what we were laughing about but the energy was ascendant!
And then Norm explained that laughing is so healthy because it massages you from the inside out.
Another time, Norm shared some of his unique parenting wisdom. This was decades ago, when young men were told that masturbation would make them blind or bar them from entering heaven. But Norm had another approach, much more sensible. He explained that before any of his teen boys left on a date, he stopped them at the door, and asked, "did you remember to masturbate?" If the answer was no, he sent them off to do their homework before they were allowed to leave the house. Now, how much more safety does that provide to the young women on a date than the alternate point of view?
Practical wisdom, for sure!
Norm's brilliant grin and iconic laughter reverberate still, in my mind and heart.
Editor-in-Chief of OpEdNews, Rob Kall interviewed Norm in 2010, right after Norm's keynote lecture at the Association for Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback conference in San Diego.
You can hear it here (you may have to sign up with Futurehealth, but it's fast and free.)
At the end of the interview, Rob asked Norm, "What do you want on your epitaph?"Norm answered simply, "He worked to do good."
Norm was brilliant, powerful and kind, a rare combination.
-- Rob Kall.
Dr. C. Norman Shealy and my granddaughter meet for the first time, 2012.
(Image by Meryl Ann Butler) Details DMCA
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
1
1
1
