That feeling when you suddenly cry in happiness. It means something good has caught you by spectacular surprise. That feeling when you fight a sad cry. It gets stuck in your throat and is sometimes harder than a good secret to keep in.
Equally paradoxical is the act of a sigh. The slow sigh after a good cry. The sigh that leads with a smile. The sigh that somehow finds its way out of your body without a thought of frustration or relief.
Some theorize that crying may have evolved in humans as a kind of signal — a signal that was valuable because it could only be picked up by those closest to us who could actually see our tears. Alternatively, sighing is said to boost blood oxygen levels and fully reinflate the lung tissue, therefore not necessarily a non-verbal communication.
Whatever the reason for these physical queues, the symbolism of a tear and a sigh create companionship between a good or a bad emotion. Think about the last time you cried. Think about the next time you sigh. Think about the beauty behind your eyes and the whistle of your breath’s goodbye.
The sigh of a girl’s new life. The cry of a friend’s goodbye.
First and Ninth 