Photo by Mihai V.
It is commonly thought that tears are only an expression of sadness, but sometimes it happens to us that tears flow often even if are not sad. How is this possible?
Our eyelids have to fight skin that descend and rise like a theater curtain. Eyelid moves so fast that it does not matter to our view. We are not even aware of these actions, although eyelids automatically open and close every six seconds.
In the outer corner of the eye is lacrimal gland. Whenever you blink, secretes the fluid – tears – at the opening of the tear duct, to clean it and to prevent its drying. Something similar happens when we cry.
Did you notice that someone drops tears when smiles a lot? Here is why. When we are smiling a lot, muscles pull the lacrimal gland and they begin to secrete more liquid.
What’s the connection between tears and sad mood? A human being, the only in the living world, manifests its feelings as crying. Infants scream, but they don’t cry until they start to think and feel.
When we are sad, our feelings, instead of using words to express themselves, are channeled into the mechanism that produces tears. It is a reflex action, which occurs despite our will, because our bodies this way manifest feelings that cannot be expressed in words.
