“Why are you crying again?” is a phrase that I have heard many more times than just once. Growing up I have always been more in touch with my emotions than the average person. Someone once told me it was called being a “highly sensitive person” but I have more commonly heard it be referred to as “overly sensitive” or just being a plain “cry baby”.

For some reason, being seen crying is treated as taboo. I was completely ashamed of the fact that I would cry all the time over the smallest of things. Growing up, I would start quivering over little things like a stolen toy or someone taking my seat at chapel. Even to this day, I can’t confront anyone about anything without having to swallow back the tears and built up emotion that I have inside. Sometimes it is so bad that I even cry for others when they tell me that they were wronged. They could be completely fine but I am over here feeling all the feelings for them! I hated that people would point at the fact that I'm just too sensitive. I would constantly try to “buck up” or be the big girl I was supposed to be. Every time I would start crying I would tell myself, “ You are ___ years old! You should not be crying over ___” I soon realized that this was a waste of my time, and in no time soon was I going to magically overnight get rid of all my feelings. There was not even the slightest possibility of getting rid of this “flaw”

How did I learn to accept this “flaw”? By learning that it was far from a flaw in the first place. I needed to realize that God has instead blessed me rather than cursed me by building me with extra emotions to share. Being sensitive isn't always as bad as it is portrayed to be. Instead of saying that I am overly sensitive, I try to think that I am instead, highly sensitive. This just means that I am aware of my own feelings and others' feelings also. In a way, it is my secret super power. It gives my the ability to channel not only my feelings but others' feelings as well. I have the ability to walk into a room and pick out a person that is having a bad day or is sad, even if they have a smile on their face and are laughing with the rest of the group. I believe that this is a powerful ability I possess, because while some others might not notice the one person in the crowd that is hurting, I do. This gives me the opportunity to take action and ask how they are doing and hopefully make their day a little brighter.

Overall, I believe that the key to accepting your emotions is by seeing that there is always a silver lining. My emotions are not a bad thing, my emotions do not define me as “overly sensitive” or a “cry baby”. I will not let someone tell me that I am “too much” because in my mind I am just enough. My emotions are my secret super power and there is nothing you can tell me to make me think different.