“I never cried as a kid”
Neither did I. One tear and I got the “Stop crying or I’ll give you something to cry about.” It’s hard for me to cry now - even when I desperately want to.
I think of the scene in Red Dawn when everyone is crying after seeing their families executed by the Russians, and Patrick Swayze is telling them “Don’t cry! Hold it back! Let it turn to something else. Just let it turn - to something else. Okay?”
As a boomer, was raised not to. Watched men die in a war, never cried. This summer cried like a baby holding my Golden Retriever as the vet put him to sleep. Life can be nuts.
Ditto on your experience as a kid.
When my wife (literally, “the-girl-next-door”) lost a battle with breast cancer at 28, it came after 7 months of her first diagnosis. No tears for me from the moment she passed (4am at hospital), services at the funeral home and driving to the cemetery. But when I took that first step away from the casket as it was being lowered, one tear and a short, short cry came out.
Now, as I’ve become a more seasoned citizen, movies or TV shows with family themes (esp those that suffer personal losses) just choke me to deep emotions.
Not surprisingly, “Sleepless in Seattle” always gets me - my wife was a spittin’ of a young Meg Ryan and the plot hits my heart with a hammer.
Anyway...
That’s my ramblin’ for the day...thanks for “listening”.