OK to Cry?

“Since boys are taught not to cry, men must learn to weep…….Men have much to mourn before they can be reborn….A day without grief is a day without awareness and compassion…When we refuse to soften, to surrender, to mourn our daily dying, we necessarily live with a high degree of illusion and depression.”  –Sam Keen

I know I was an emotion-stuffer.  It wasn’t OK in my home growing up to display “perceived negative” emotions.  A person must also feel a safe-ness around another person if he is to cry in front of them or express those kinds of deep emotions.  A good exercise to do is to figure out what in life there is to mourn: from poverty to divorces to missed opportunities–it’s different for each person, but it’s a soul-cleanser and shows a pliable heart.  The Bible says those that mourn will be comforted–a great promise from God.  It just might be the first step toward a breakthrough emotionally.