Ever wondered how strange emotions present? Like steam trapped in a closed engine, the heart builds pressure until it can no longer hold, until the only way out is release, but release doesn’t come easy for those taught to suppress, to “man up,” to hold it all in until the silence becomes deafening.

You see many men live in this quiet implosion, struggling to make sense of what they feel but unable to express it. Society applauds stoicism but forgets that behind every “strong” man is often a wounded boy, gasping for relief. The more we hold it in, the heavier the weight becomes, until it crushes us from within.

I’ve learned that crying is not a sign of weakness but a mark of humanity. Every tear is a release valve, every sob a confession of being alive, and when I allow myself to cry, my mind often clears, my heart lightens, and I get to meet the child within me, the one I once silenced for the sake of being “strong.”

So I say: don’t hold it all in. Your heart can’t sustain it, your body will rebel, your mind will fracture. Cry if you must, laugh if you can, be angry when you need to, but above all, find joy. Because vulnerability is not the opposite of strength; its strength made honest. And when they say man up, please, please remind them that Big boys cry too, and it’s okay,