Lover's Key, Florida

Lover's Key, Florida
I WILL FIND OTHER SEAS.

Monday, May 2, 2011

The Sacredness of Tears

Today has been another of those busy days.  Now that the weather has gotten better I get out more.  This morning I played in the senior golf league.  It was cold and rainy and I played miserably.  Other than that, it was fine.  Just as I was putting my clubs in my car to head for home the sun came out, a good thing because the lawn needed mowing and I wanted to get it done this afternoon, which I did.

I do some of my best thinking while mowing the lawn.  Today I thought about tears and then thought about a quote someone recently sent me.  There is sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are messengers of overwhelming grief...and unspeakable love.”  ~ Washington Irving  That quote, which probably wouldn't have meant a whole lot to me ten years ago, now describes perfectly my life since Gwen's death.  It also reminds me of moments early in our marriage when there were tears.  Sometime, while making love,  Gwen would cry, and  I worried about hurting her. "No," she would say, " I am bursting with tears of happiness."  Unspeakable love.

Yes, Dear, I do some of my best thinking while mowing the lawn, and  memories of our dog Max lying in the shade of the tree and you watching me from beneath the awning  brought on those sacred tears as I mowed through another day of facing the disunion of our union.  My friend Dave helped me to understand how the tears I one time feared are now welcome visitors.  Hmmm.  .  .now there's a poem in the making.

Kids, I have not changed how I feel about getting a dog, but I did miss Max while I was mowing the lawn. It's like missing your mom.  .  .



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