Alex oh so did not want to be here.

Alex had never liked visiting his Aunt Estelle, even as a kid. He thought she had smelled funny and had mean eyes. The truth was she had scared him. The truth is she still did. Alex had never been all that comfortable around old people. And really old people gave him the creeps. They reminded him too much of what he had to look forward to.

Alex wished he had never told his fiancé Tanya that he even had an Aunt Estelle, who was actually his great-aunt on his mother's side. Tanya didn't like being around old people any better than he did, but had decided to make an exception for Aunt Estelle. "After all, we're practically family." In a surprising burst of "be kind to the elderly" generosity, Tanya had decided that it would be a really good thing if she and Alex fixed lunch for Aunt Estelle once a week.

Alex had been horrified and flatly refused. "Tanya, you don't know. She smells funny and she has mean eyes."

Tanya had simply said, "Oh, Alex", in the tone she used when she thought he was being silly. Alex knew a lost argument when he saw one.

Now, the current chapter of what Alex referred to as "My Whipped Life" found him sitting in Aunt Estelle's living room, watching her eye him suspiciously. Tanya had surprised him by actually liking the old lady. She admired her sharp tongue and fiery spirit, the very qualities that had Alex perched on the edge of his chair, ready to race to the door at the slightest provocation. Adding to his state of stress was the fact that Tanya was busy in the kitchen making tuna fish sandwiches, leaving Alex alone, and charged with the daunting task of "entertaining" his aunt.

"So, I hear you two are getting hitched." Alex thought the look she gave him was downright sinister. Or maybe she just had a sour stomach.

"That's right, Aunt Estelle."

"Don't call me that!"

"You told me last time to call you Aunt Estelle."

"I changed my mind."

Alex sighed. Of course she did. She always did. Just like she'd change it again next week.

"You don't seem very happy about it."

"About what? Oh, getting married. Sure I am Au - uh, Estelle. I've got other things on my mind is all."

"Humph."

"No, really, I'm very happy to be getting married. Thrilled in fact."

Aunt Estelle looked at him and then glanced towards the kitchen in speculation. "Uh-huh, sure."

Alex knew he had to do some damage control before his dear aunt told everyone he was getting married with a shotgun at his back. "The thing is, well, I have this friend that I'm worried about. She's been really depressed lately."

Alex thought that had to be the understatement of the year. Alex, Bud and Stacy had always been a tight-knit team all during high school, the nucleus of a group of friends that eventually grew to include Tanya, Tanya's sister Beth and Bud's boyfriend Dale. Last spring Stacy's mother had passed away suddenly. Stacy now had no other family and her grief had evolved into a gloomy depression that her friends were at a loss to know how to deal with. After telling his aunt about Stacy and her mother, Alex added, "I want to help her, but I don't know how."

"Depressed, huh? You know, they've got drugs for that."

Alex hadn't thought of that. But after a moment he shook his head. "I don't think that's really what Stacy needs right now."

"Make her laugh."

"Huh?"

"Did I stutter, boy? I said, make her laugh."

"But, like I said, she's depressed, and -"

Aunt Estelle rolled her eyes. "Look, I was once young and stupid and prone to self-pity. Found myself in a real black mood, wandering around not knowing where I was going, not caring. Found myself trying to decide between throwing myself off of the Front Street Bridge or going to a movie. Made no never mind to me. Fortunately the coin toss came up movie and I went. Arsenic and Old Lace. You know it?"

"Uh -"

"Don't matter. But the movie changed my life. Ha!" Aunt Estelle slapped her knee, causing Alex to jump. "That Cary Grant, boy! Anyway, I laughed. And I laughed some more. When I came out of the theater I was still laughing. And by the time I got home I realized I wasn't feeling sorry for myself anymore."

Alex was interested in spite of himself. "So, you're saying -"

Aunt Estelle sighed dramatically. "You ain't none too bright, are you, boy? Self-pity and laughter can't exist at the same time. It's impossible. Now, I don't know what your friend's problem is. It might actually be clinical. But, in my case it was pure self-pity. After that day, I knew I had a tool to fight it, that I didn't have to give in to it. So anytime I started feeling depressed or sorry for myself, I'd go to a funny picture show. Worked every time." Aunt Estelle looked at Alex keenly, knowing she had his full attention. "The healing power of laughter was a cliché even back in my day, but it works. I've experienced it. I've seen it work in other folks."

Alex was rapidly thinking. "I guess maybe I could pick up some videos. What do you think I should get?"

"How the hell should I know? Whatever you think is funny. I was always partial to the Marx Brothers, myself. Steve Martin's pretty funny. Maybe that Ace Ventura fellow. I suppose there's always that dirty picture all you young kids are so keen on, "American Pie".

The sudden image of his great-aunt chortling over certain scenes in "American Pie" gave Alex's skin a bad case of the crawlies. Aunt Estelle smirked. "I may be old, boy, but I ain't dead. Oh, and another thing. Laughter needs to be shared. So don't just hand her a video and say, 'Here, go laugh it up'. Have some friends over and bust a gut together." At Alex's blank look, she snorted. "Boy, you sure do have a deer-in-the- headlights look about you. Haven't you ever seen a movie in a theater, laughing so hard you thought you'd pee your pants, only to see it by yourself at home and wonder why you ever thought it was funny?"

Alex smiled slowly in understanding. Aunt Estelle continued, "Laughter is more potent when it's shared. Sometimes something's funny *because* everyone's laughing."

Alex thought seriously about all she had told him. He had to admit, a lot of it made sense. It was worth a try. "Thanks, Au - uh, Estelle, I really -"

"TANYA!" Aunt Estelle suddenly shouted, causing Alex to practically jump out of his skin. "Where the hell is my lunch?"

"Coming, Aunt Estelle."

"Don't call me that!"

That afternoon, Alex was a man on a mission. First, he contacted the whole gang and told them to all meet at his place that same evening. Next, Alex set out to find just the right videos to rent. The clerk at the store was eager to help and had some good ideas: "Monty Python and the Holy Grail", "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective", "National Lampoon's Animal House", "Airplane" and "All of Me" with Steve Martin and Lily Tomlin. After much searching he even managed to find a Marx Brothers movie and "Arsenic and Old Lace" as a homage to Aunt Estelle.

That evening, after the last person had arrived, Tanya asked the question on everyone's mind, "So, Alex, what's up?"

"Tonight we are having a funny movie marathon. Fun and frivolity for the whole family."

Stacy had a decidedly pained expression. "Uh, Alex, I'm not really in the mood -"

"That's just it. You haven't been 'in the mood' for a while now. And tonight we're going to do something about it. I have popcorn, I have cold drinks in the frig and I have approximately 12 hours of mad laughter and hilarity. And there's one house rule. Nobody leaves until everyone laughs." Alex looked pointedly at Stacy.

Stacy simply sighed. "Then it's going to be a long night."

They all settled down comfortably to watch Alex's selections. One movie followed the other. Everybody laughed, ate some popcorn and laughed some more. Everybody that is, except one. But suddenly everyone stopped laughing. Because, suddenly, Stacy started laughing.

Alex could never remember later exactly which joke or gag or scene had managed to break through Stacy's barriers. He was too busy enjoying what he saw. The sight of Stacy giggling, and then laughing out loud, her head thrown back, her face flushed, her eyes shining, was the most beautiful thing he'd seen in ages. Bud and Dale, sitting side by side on the floor, seemed mesmerized. Beth had tears in her eyes. For awhile everyone simply gaped at her. Finally, Alex grinned and began laughing, too. One by one each member of the group joined in and laughter rang through the apartment until the wee hours of the morning.

Alex knew this breakthrough didn't solve Stacy's problems. Not by a long shot. But it was a start.

"Thanks, Aunt Estelle. We owe you one."

End