Picture this. A student on the cusp of graduation after six long years of halfhearted struggles. His passion left him years ago and the husk continued with classes as best as he could. "One class away. One exam away." His mind clinging to the number one. One barrier to go. One wall to tear down before he could declare himself a graduate in a field reminiscent of Mars to him.
The day of the final arrived. The student studied as best as he could for a subject he absolutely loathes. Professor placed the blue book before him and judgment hour has come. The student's heart stopped. A feeling of defeat came over him as the subject matter seemed distant from the focus of his studies. "No. No. No." His hands started to shake and the grinning specter within looked on with delight at the opportunity to feed on the student's spirit once more. The student pulled from the tiny bit he studied while cursing himself for not hitting the books a little harder for such a pivotal exam. The student wrote, turned in his then death certificate, and left with the specter's laughter in his ears.
The student walked home. His thoughts raced. "Damn it. I really messed up. This was my last class and my last chance. Perhaps I really am going to be worthless after all. If I'm lucky, I'll get a C and still be able to escape this prison. Anything but a D."
A voice belonging to a fellow student with pride in her corny jokes played in the student's head amidst all that chaos. No matter what the situation, she had the wit to create a sense of comedy of an acquired taste. Simplistic puns and goofy rhymes were specialties of hers. Even in the middle of class, if a pun came to mind she'd share it without fear. You can say her jokes were "too hot to Handel." She retold her joke from a couple of months ago, "Cs get degrees but D is the capital of degrees."
He chuckled as if she just cracked the joke right next to him. And his heart grew steady. The specter settled into a corner realizing a corny joke robbed him of his next meal. A D would also allow the student to escape his prison. No one should celebrate mediocrity. No one should take pride in lower expectations. But survival is another matter. Escaping from one's prison and defeating mental demons are things to celebrated. It is this spirit that surfaced in a simple corny joke. It is this bit of wisdom that gave value to the corny humor.
Roughly two weeks later, the student discovered a B for the class. Free from his shackles, he bounced in joy. His fears seemed irrational once his grade was discovered. Regardless of his result, it was a corny joke that gave him peace of mind during two weeks between the exam and his result. He could only think of wanting to say thank you.
What is corny humor then? Can it really be called corny if it got a chuckle or two? I've found the corniest humor to be the most delightful. For it is the corniest humor that tends to be the most organic and the most authentic. It is the corniest humor that might have the most surprising effect on a stranger. Something I know now and cherish greatly thanks to a fellow student I never really got to know too well.
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