If there were no rain, fields would become parched and brittle, and many creatures would die. 

If we could not cry, all our emotions would eventually dry up, too, and soon we would not laugh either.

Our tears cleanse us.

Our tears heal.

They make us whole. 

Tears are as important to our growth as rain is to a flower.

They help release the pressure of sadness so we can feel better.

After a storm, when the sun shines again through the clouds, 

a brightly colored rainbow appears.

After our tears, our inner sun shines,

and rainbows are formed from our pain. 

Each of us has our own landscape of events that have hurt us or given us joy.

And so we have our own private responses to the world around us.

Something may hurt one of us that would not hurt another. 

Like the oceans and rivers, sometimes our well of tears is flowing.

We do not always understand all the forces affecting the oceans, or our well of tears. 

The kind of bucket that draws water from a well is solid and durable, and it lowers itself deep enough to find water. 

Good friends and family members are like that.

It is comforting to share our private well with such people.