Just because you don’t…

Just because you don’t SEE us… doesn’t mean…

There’s a very interesting and revealing (almost throw-away) scene in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 that was SO powerful when I saw it that I had to leave the room so my kids wouldn’t see me.

In the scene, Drax is remembering his daughter and wife, who were both killed.

As he reviews his memories, he sits still with a blank, stoic almost robotic expression.

Then Mantis touches him and tries to feel his emotions with her powers. And even though Mantis’ power is that she can FEEL others emotions, you never see her cry.

Until…

Almost immediately after touching Drax, Mantis is OVERWHELMED and starts to sob intensely.

Drax remains blank, stoic and still.

VERY… interesting and revealing.

Why?

That’s what may of us men do. We FEEL powerfully. We HURT deeply. We SUFFER very intensely.

But…

Sometimes when we seem robotic or cold or uncaring, we are simply managing our emotions. Many of us believe we need to be the “rock” or the “pillar of strength” for our families.

When our families need someone to “lean on” to know everything will be okay, that is the role we want to fill.

Just because you don’t SEE us “fall apart” or “freak out” doesn’t mean we don’t have those emotions or are suppressing them.

Sometimes we’re simply choosing to be strong in that moment… FOR YOU.

Sometimes we’re just being Drax.