Tears

"There is a sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are the messengers of overwhelming grief, of deep contrition, and of unspeakable love."

---Washington Irving---

I am no stranger to tears.  I cry watching the news. I cry at happy movies just as much as sad. I cry for people I know and I cry for people I have never met. I cry when I am happy and when I am sad.  I cry when I am tired and stressed.  Tears have always been a release and something I am not ashamed to show.  Since August my tears have been more frequent, more intense.  They happen without a moments notice, sometimes they make sense and other times make no sense at all. 

Yesterday I cried for my dad’s best friend who lost his father to his five year battle with Alzheimer's.  The intensity of these tears was driven by the realization that for the first time in my life I truly understand his grief, his loss.  They were tears of compassion and sadness for Jon and his mom and his family.  Jon’s father, Byron, was an incredible man that my father adored. My tears were also those of true anguish as I was brought back to the moment when the coroner and police officer stood in the living room of my parent’s house and confirmed our worst fear.  I cried because there were no words, only tears to express the feelings in my heart.  The grief and the overwhelming love.

I cried when I looked at Facebook and saw this, but I also giggled (just slightly), because you would have to know Jon to understand.  The picture accompanied the post.

"My best friend Byron has joined my best friend Dan in heaven today... It was a blessing God took Byron.  My only regret is... with both of them now in heaven... I'm pretty sure I won't see them again." 

My Dad-Byron-Jon

Jon's Wedding, September 21, 1985