one day we will die and our ashes will fly from the aeroplane over the sea

old men make me inexpicably sad (the character speaking in that quote is an old man). the second picture is one of the saddest pictures i've ever seen. western culture demands masculinity and strength from men, but i suspect that it's a faux-strength; a front. a man needs and wants to cry as much as a woman does, but socially it's taboo. it's especially confronting to see an older man visibly upset because ideas of male masculinity are particularly traditional; it was far less acceptable for a man to express sadness or despair fifty years ago than it is today. when i see an old man cry, i can't help but think that something truly awful must have happened for him to allow himself to break down like that. after holding back tears your whole adult life, there must come a point where you simply can't do it any longer.