Grief, Lament, Weep & Smile Again

Chaos.

Just came back from a minor laser surgery, exhausted.

Yet, a sudden urge to write because I've witnessed something that might change my perspective for good.

Children.

While I was waiting for my turn to go into surgery, I heard kids wailing and screaming because of the fear of pain when the needle pierces through their delicate little hands.

There were 3 kids today, they were causing a commotion throughout the whole morning.

When facing fear, the first thing they do is to cry as loud as possible (hopefully to scare away the doctors and nurses) and find their parents. And when their parents appear, the louder they cry.

Yes. Kids are simple and straightforward. They function mostly by instinct.

Yet, if it is the other way round when the kids express nothing when they sense fear and pain, we will naturally think that is a problem.

But here is something to ponder.

Why then as we grow up, we were taught not to express our emotions, or are always taught to get over things? Isn't grieving and lamenting the healthiest response to pain and suffering?

Anyway.

I went through the surgery and woke up from the anesthesia. The first thing I heard was the kids crying again because it finally ended. This time I smiled even in my grogginess.

Something about their voice when they cry filled the room with hope.

And suddenly I thought to myself, yes, sometimes grieving is the best response.

Crying doesn't mean sadness.

Crying is discharging all the bottled up emotions that we unconsciously stuffed in.

Disappointment, Anger, Frustration, Confusion.

Crying is a way to process emotions.

It is better to pull the plug than to stuff down emotions and numb the heart.

Besides, after every good cry, hope is always around the corner.

And then I shed a tear and fell back to sleep.