Over the years I have developed a fairly high tolerance to physical pain. I cannot remember the last time I shed tears due to suffering an injury. This includes sprains, broken bones, and even kidney stones. You also can’t speak poorly of me and expect me to cry. That ole “sticks-and-stones” thing has evidently stuck with me. With that being said, I will confess, I am a crier.
Who knows when this began, but it becomes very evident when I watch certain movies. Toy Story 3 and The Blind Side are recent culprits. Sports movies like Radio, Rudy, The Rookie, and We Are Marshall, not to mention Brian’s Song, are no escape. TV is guilty too as Home Makeover requires a box of tissues every week.
Grief is a given, but a variety of other emotions can turn on the taps. As we near football season I have to steel myself to the National Anthem being played as my patriotic heart swells and I think of all the men and women who have given their lives to make this country great. Tears of joy have also overcome me at times. It’s gotten to the point where I am being invited to parties. “Ladies and gentlemen, introducing the Incredible Crying Man.”
Tears come when I see a child hurting, a loved one suffering, or when I am overwhelmed by love and generosity. I cried watching the news reports of the 9/11 terrorist attack and the effects of Katrina on our own gulf coast. I cried even more witnessing the generosity of friends from across the nation as they attempted to help us recover.
I keep telling myself that crying is okay. It is a natural reaction. And, as long as it’s not in baseball, crying is acceptable (because everyone knows there’s no crying in baseball). I have now come to believe that crying doesn’t make me less of a man. It just makes me more of a human.
Musician and lyricist Bob Carlisle penned the following words, “When a grown man cries, you can feel the thunder. He can call down angels with signs and wonders. He’s a powerful man with a weary soul, and his tears can touch the very heart of God.”
Who’s Bob Carlisle? He’s the man who shared the story of his daughter growing up in the song “Butterfly Kisses.”
Yeah, that song gets me every time.
