Now that April Fool’s Day is over, it is safe to agree it is probably the most unfunny day of the year. It is the day you are supposed to chuckle and act surprised when somebody stretches plastic wrap over the toilet seat and offers you a plate of frozen mashed potatoes disguised as an ice cream sundae—although you are totally expecting it—because they’ve done it three years in a row. It’s like having to be romantic on Valentine’s Day—the pressure is just too much.
It is said the April Fool’s Day began in 1582 when Pope Gregory XIII (not known for his practical jokes) offered to the world the Gregorian Calendar, named after himself, which is, admittedly kind of funny. The problem with the new calendar was that the new year had previously begun on April 1 to celebrate spring and now the Gregorian Calendar had New Year’s Day on January 1 which is always cold and miserable and no time to get enthused about the new year. While most folks accepted the new calendar, there were those who refused to go along with it and were mercilessly mocked by the more adaptable Gregorian hipsters.
And so it was that April 1st became a day of trickery and surprises. Although April Fool’s Day has the potential to be amusing, some people are doing it wrong. “Look outside—your car’s on fire! Ha, ha. April Fools!” Okay, maybe it is a relief to discover your car really isn’t on fire. But when you bang your shins on the coffee table, trying to look out the window at your presumably flaming Prius and knock over the fish bowl, how funny is that? It may be more a test of your friendship and tolerance and your cardiovascular system.
Perhaps April Fool’s Day is mostly a celebration of normalcy. If somebody says, “There is a deer in your back yard! April Fools!” it’s not funny because deer go in your yard all the time. But if they say, “There’s a bear on your porch swing!” and you fall for it, that’s on you.
A good prank is not supposed to result in injury or even humiliation. It’s supposed to shake you out of humdrum routine. When you go to brush your teeth in the morning of April 1st, not being quite awake and it slowly dawns on you that your toothpaste has been replaced with mayonnaise, it tells you that you can’t take everything for granted, that someone has taken the trouble to have some fun with you and that you have a functioning gag reflex.
I guess it’s a good thing that April 1st is the day to expect the unexpected. Just imagine if April Fool’s Day appeared at random. There might be a lot more fist fights, divorces and calls to 911. So, it’s probably for the best that Pope Gregory XIII didn’t have a sense of humor.