Saturday, October 27, 2007

Every Bit as Good as a Good Cry



Some people weep easily and even though crying in our culture tends to be embarrassing, I'm always slightly envious of the people who can let their tears flow whenever they feel like it.

As a child I was a champion weeper, but later on - don't remember when or why - I mostly just stopped crying.

I'm not cold as a stone. It wasn't hard at all to weep when my parents died, when my sister died, last summer when my friend Chevy died. I cried at my nephew's wedding last May, too, and sobbed like a baby when I lost a good friend in July. But I don't think I've cried since then.

Did you know that a hard cry (including sobbing) clears the abdominal lymph glands? It's so healing. Certain toxins and traces of extraneous hormones also get washed away with tears. In fairytales, tears have magical properties - they warm the frozen hearts of heroes who have been entranced by evil witches, they bring sight back to blind eyes, that sort of thing.

The rain (that continues to fall this morning) feels like a good cry, a release, a thorough cleansing of sky, earth, pavements. It's even washing away the pidgeon guano that sticks like glue to the statues of soldiers on horseback scattered throughout DC.



Usually after three or four days of rain, I get a little stir crazy, I want to see the blue sky again, but this time around, it's different. It's worth the soggy boots, unruly umbrella, the leaves plastered to sidewalks and cars, the fact that I have to get the towel and dry off Jake after every walk. It's worth every inconvenience to finally emerge from the prolonged drought.

I'm feeling for everyone in Georgia right now where it's still terribly dry. May the rain find its way deeper into the southeast. And in the meantime, many sincere thanks to the weather gods for this beautiful four day marathon of soft rain.

12 comments:

Unknown said...

Beautiful images, Reya. Ah, rain and crying, yes... For years and years I forgot how to cry but when I finally turned inward, faced some truths, the tears gushed forth and now I cry at the drop of a hat! You're right, tears like rain are so very healing - a washing away, a cleansing, letting everything be fresh again.

kbrow said...

Oh you FINALLY got rain! Hooray! I cried all through my youth, teens and 20's and then weirdly, I, too, dried up my tears. I welcome the good cry these days.

Steve Reed said...

I don't cry easily in real life...but I sometimes cry at sad movies. Even commercials can make me tear up. (Pathetic!) Wonder why that is??

Lynne said...

I'm so glad you finally got rain too. It is cleansing, isn't? Everything feels so new. We got nearly 4 inches from this storm! Soggy, now.

I can cry just watching a good sappy movie! It's crazy!

Lori Witzel said...

Lovely moist pics, Reya...thanks for the refreshing moment!

Reya Mellicker said...

You are so welcome! And thanks for the compliments!

Hey tonight I watched "Sense and Sensibility" and even though I usually dislike Jane Austin, something about this movie really got me. I even cried at the end when Emma Thompson got to marry Hugh Grant.

Awwww!!

Pod said...

i don't think i cry nearly as much as i ought. i tend to either have a sob from the depths of my being, or just a strained tear. that's not to say i'm not full of emotion though. your photos seem different. more colour. more important. something.....

i think i'd have a tear if i met jakey

;0p

x

Anonymous said...

you told me that crying was healing and clearing, and I told Emily, and she told the whole 4th grade! I was so proud that I had not passed on to the next generation the embarrassment our mother felt about crying. Thank you!

Reya Mellicker said...

Wow, Hannah, that is so cool!!

And Pod ... oh. I don't know if I'll shed a tear or just start laughing out loud should we ever get to meet. Maybe both at the same time!

Mother of Invention said...

Then my lymph must be well rid of toxins because I cry fairly easily! We're finally getting some rain after a long hot dry summer and beautiful long fall.
Snow is going to come in about 15 days!
Not THAT'S something to cry about!

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Bobby D. said...

I cried a lot as a kid, my parents would get misty over a sappy film, an episode of "Lassie", a sad story in the newspaper -- they thought weeping over a dead pet for a week was normal. They loved animals and novels and movies. Somehow I don't cry much anymore. It must be this happy happy world we live in.

But are you saying that crying is good for your ABS?
(I am misting up just thinking about THAT.) I have been working on strengthening my abs, and if I have to sob like crazy, that's OK with me.
How often should I
cry?

Would I need to wail?

How long should the cry be?
(I want maximum benefit)