Okay, I'm a wuss........perhaps. People that spend any time around me know I cry. I don't cry when I'm sad........ or more accurately, it's not the only time I cry. I cry when I'm happy. I cry when I'm really angry. Heck, I cry if I think someone else is going to cry. I can be inspired to cry.
I used to be embarrased by it, but the older I get the more I embrace it. When I discovered the people around me weren't shunning me or shying away from me because of it, I relaxed. I get teased occasionally, but it has never been mean or hurtful. One of my coworkers will signal for me to start fanning my eyes if she's going to tell a story she thinks will touch my heart because she knows I'll cry.
I think I realized it would be one of my defining characteristics the day my son and daughter-in-law told us they were expecting our first grandchild. I had planned for the moment for years (I had her baby blanket made more than a year and a half before they were engaged). I pictured myself jumping up and down and screaming hysterically, much like those scenes on America's Funniest Home Videos. I couldn't wait to shout it to the mountain tops. And yet when the moment actually arrived, I melted into a quiet puddle with my head on the table top at Applebee's restaurant, so overcome with joy and the miracle of it all.
For some years, my husband didn't know what to do when the tears started to roll. He wanted to make it better. As time has gone on, I've worn off on him. Now at any unsuspected moment, he too can be overcome with joy or sadness, or even awe.
One evening not so long ago, I arranged for our granddaughter to stay at our house for dinner and to take her home later. She had been sharing her once private 'grandma time' with her new baby sister for several months and never complained. I thought it would be nice to focus on her for an evening. It was spur of the moment and my husband had no idea. When he walked in the door from work a little later, he was surprised to see her sitting there looking up at him. His eyes filled up with tears. He mentioned how much it meant to him for her to just be there when he came home. You would have thought I set it up just for him.
A couple months ago, when we learned our nephew and niece-in-law lost the baby they were carrying, we cried together. There have been studies that suggest when two people live together long enough and share life's experiences, they start to look alike. I don't see it with us. I do think if you live together long enough and share enough experiences, your hearts begin to look alike.
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