David Hasselhoff is a terrible singer. But did you know he’s one of the biggest pop stars in Germany?

It’s true! You probably know him from classic TV shows like “Knight Rider” or “Baywatch,” but in Germany, he has rock-star, God-like status. There’s even a Hasselhoff museum in Berlin. How did he get such recognition? Picture this: New Year’s Eve, 1989 and there stands Mr. Hasselhoff himself atop the Berlin wall, belting out a song aptly titled “Looking for Freedom.” And the Germans ate it up like it was their national dish. He became their knight in shining leather adorned with twinkling electric lights and mullet flowing in the air singing as if trapped eternally in the 80s.

Now why am I telling you about “the Hoff”? Because I’ve had a rough couple of weeks, but I’ve always found the best antidote to be a potent concoction of physical activity and good old-fashioned laughter. And David Hasselhoff makes me laugh.

His music, more particularly, his icon status in Germany, has been a running joke in the Koch household for years. With three of the four Kochs being German citizens (dual German-American citizens), it’s become a tradition to tease our German side about their “national treasure.”

My boys joined in, making a music video, complete with spot-on lip-syncing and some questionable hip gyrations — a performance that would surely go viral if they ever allowed it to see the light of day. Then I took things up a notch. I planned an elaborate April Fool’s prank that spanned months in the making. I involved my husband’s college students as unwitting accomplices. They slipped photos of The Hoff sandwiched between their homework submissions. They serenaded him with the Hoff’s music as they sauntered into his classroom.

My husband’s office became a veritable shrine to the Hoff, adorned with fan photos, posters, and ribbons galore. And his car? Let’s just say it received a spirited makeover (from the inside, mind you) while he was at work, transforming it into a rolling tribute to all things Hoff — much to his bemusement when he discovered it after rounding up his students for a community service project.

But the pièce de résistance? That came at the end of the academic. I arranged for a life-sized, cardboard cutout of the Hoff to be delivered to one of his colleague’s homes. They wasted no time positioning the Hoff — seated appropriately on a throne — at the end-of-the-year departmental student dinner. It was spectacular and marked the birth of my new favorite diversion: practical jokes — with my favorite day of the year being April Fool’s Day.

Over the years, my pranks have evolved. From freezing the almond milk in my kids’ cereal to staging grotesque scenes involving damp, crumpled, toilet paper rolls resembling our small dog’s excrement. I’ve done it all.

But the best was years ago, when I hacked my husband’s phone and programmed it to replace his commonly used words with some absurd phrases from our former president. For example, “coffee” became “covfefe,” “cool” turned into “bigly,” and “Hannaford” transformed into “Build a wall!” He was convinced it was a joke from Apple. Occasionally I typed these words into my texts for effect. I kept the charade going for over a year before revealing the truth.

And these are the things that keep me up at night. Truly. I stifle my laughter as I plot my next prank. Sometimes, I burst into laughter seemingly out of nowhere, sometimes to the point of tears, leaving others to wonder what’s so funny. I often attribute it to watching something amusing on my phone, but half the time, it’s just me, plotting and amusing myself.

But this year I didn’t give it my usual effort. Still, I did sneak in a few pranks at my workplace last weekend. Though I was gentle with everyone; we’re still getting to know each other.

As for my family, many of them got off easy this year. However, there is one unsuspecting victim who has yet to discover their prank, and the anticipation of their reaction has brought a smile to my face all week.

But it seems the final prank is on me. For the second year in a row, colorful pinwheels have mysteriously appeared on my front lawn on April Fool’s Day. For the life of me, I cannot identify the prankster. Part of me desperately wants to know. Part of me loves the thrill of the chase. Thank you for making me laugh.

But rest assured. I’ll be ready with a prank of my own next year.

Meanwhile, in a world that often feels heavy, a smile can be the greatest gift we can give. Join me in making the world a little brighter, one chuckle at a time.

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