Is it weird when a man cries in public? Many people think so. In fact, after asking nearly thirty men to tell me if they’d cried in public, I could only get 4 men to give me their stories. One other person in this article is me. Many of the responses I got were, “Why would I cry in public?”
Here’s what the men that have cried in public had to say:
1. David
I cried in public this year. No, it wasn’t crying; it was wailing. I rolled on the floor and screamed. Do you know why? I got a tooth extraction. It was in a government hospital, so there were many people around. I didn’t cry during the extraction, but after the dentist was done and I went to sit in the waiting room, waiting for my brother to get me pain meds, a type of pain that I’ve never experienced suddenly overwhelmed me. I first started by complaining, then as people consoled me, it turned to tears. When I started rolling on the floor, they had to give me an emergency pain-relieving injection. Some of the nurses were laughing secretly because I went to the hospital doing “big boy” and here I was, on the floor, saying I was in pain. I didn’t care.
2. Ola
As part of the activities at my traditional wedding, the MC told me to go to my parents, hug them, and tell them thank you for everything they’d done for me. In that moment, as I embraced them both, I thought about all the sacrifices they made for me as a child and broke down crying very ugly tears. I didn’t stop crying for a while; even when I got to my seat. It was overwhelming. My wife wasn’t there yet when this happened, but when she heard she laughed at me because she knew I’d cry. I’m the more emotional one in our marriage.
3. Joshua
My daughter almost died when she was born. She was a big baby, and my wife’s first child so her birth was really stressful. By the time she came out, they had to put her in ICU. Every doctor that spoke with me afterwards basically tried to prepare my mind for the worst. It was almost like they wanted to hug me and tell me, “Sorry, you can have another child after her. But she won’t make it through the night.” She wasn’t even breathing. When my wife asked how our daughter was doing, I said she was fine, and that they both needed to get some rest for the night. I went home, called my pastor and we prayed till the next morning.
When I got to the hospital, my daughter was a totally different person. She was more active than a normal 1-day-old baby. She was full of life and energy. I knew it could only be God.
The next time I went to church, as the choir worshipped, I thought about everything that had happened and just broke down crying. I cried so much that someone had to ask me if everything was okay. I told them I wasn’t crying because I was angry, but because I was happy.
4. Ola
I cried at work because my boss was mean and inconsiderate. I was about to go home one day and they said, “Come back and sit down, can’t you see that I am still around?” I felt like shit at work on most days, but that was the last stroke because my girlfriend was around and I was about to leave with her. I can’t remember who saw me crying, but they were not surprised. That’s how the workplace was.
5. Chuks
A few years ago, I invited my friends over to celebrate my birthday. We were in my house overnight, drinking and partying, but at some point in the middle of the night, I just started crying uncontrollably. I don’t know why. I just broke down crying. The more my friends tried to make me understand why I was crying, or make me stop, the more I cried. Till today, I don’t know why I cried. Maybe I got too drunk, I don’t know. It still freaks me out.
