The last time Mom would laugh at one of my silly jokes.
When I was in 11th grade, I devised a test to figure out if a girl was into me. I would say something to her that was painfully not funny, but I would say it with a tone of voice and a look in my eye that made clear I was trying to be funny. If the girl laughed, I was in.
The test works because when someone genuinely likes you, everything you do is charming to them.
My mom would laugh at every little joke I made, whether it was clever or stillborn. That unconditional approval made the world seem like a safer place. I knew that no matter what was going on in my life, I could go home and find total acceptance. It was the truest safety net for life that I could ever hope to find.
My mom was definitely into me.