I once read a snippet called  ”The 45 Lessons Life Taught Me.”  It is one of my favorite pieces; consequently, I’m going to illustrate each lesson on this blog.  In the end, I hope you’re as inspired as I am to make each day better than the last.

Life Lesson #7: Cry with someone… it’s more healing than crying alone.

Okay, let’s be honest here.  Everybody cries.  I don’t care if you put on the most macho persona in the world — some day, some time, you’re gonna experience something so sad that it brings you to tears.  And that’s perfectly all right.

However, it seems to me that crying, at least in American society, has been turned into something so private and verboten that many people are forced to hide their sorrow until they can cry in a room or car by themselves.

That’s sad.  (No pun intended.)

See, when you cry alone, you’re really only accomplishing half the goal of crying.  Sure, you’re expressing your feelings, but you’re not really getting anything back except a small sense of relief.  What’s you’re not receiving is a sense that someone else understands what you’re experiencing and is willing to hold your hand through it… and maybe even cry alongside you.

The next time you feel teary-eyed, allow yourself to cry with a trusted person — your spouse, your kids, your best friend.   It’s cathartic beyond belief and makes it that much easier to get beyond your grief.