Languages have always fascinated me. At the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11), man decided to try to reach heaven on his own. (I’ve often wondered if God ever gets hysterical laughing at man and his puny efforts). The result was that God merely “confused their language” (Genesis 11:9) so that they were forced to scatter and go where they could be understood. Hence, the term “babbling” which we have often used to indicate that which makes no sense. (In fact, we actually hear a great deal of that now, but that subject is for another day).
Dave and I recently watched a show about various types of devastations and one was an earthquake which resulted in a tsunami in Japan. The people were running and screaming and yelling in utter terror, and though we could imagine what they were saying, their words themselves meant absolutely nothing to us. Any language other than the one you speak sounds like jibberish. My toddler grandson will run by saying something, and I always wish I knew what he was proclaiming. But, soon enough he will master our method of communicating and then – look out. My husband didn’t talk till he was 3 and then he went into radio for a career!
Some languages are harder than others. Some are so beautiful; others are rather guttural. But, within each group, everyone understands each other. Many people across the world learn English as an attempt at a universal language, but that is mostly for economic reasons. Still, not everyone learns it.
So, is there a universal language? I believe there is. 
Tears. Our tears speak volumes and there is no need to say anything. or even speak the same language. When the Japanese woman cried over losing her husband to the tsunami, I didn’t need to know what words she was saying. When my friend approached me after being with her cancer-stricken daughter-in-law, I didn’t need her to say anything. I knew the dear one had passed away.
When someone’s heart is breaking, there is no need for words. In fact, words can’t really convey the depth of the feeling. Tears can. And, when you cry with someone who is hurting, you speak volumes without saying a word.
God may have scattered us so that we could communicate with those we can understand, whose words don’t sound foreign to us. But, He also gave us a means to relate in an even deeper way. Without saying anything.
Don’t discount a friend’s tears and don’t feel uncomfortable with them. They are sharing something meaningful, something we can all understand.
“You have kept a count of my sorrows; put my tears in Your bottle.” (Psalm 56:8)
Thx Teri. The older we get, the more we “communicate “ but thankfully that language will all change soon and very soon!
Another blessing from God is that He understands all of us. He speaks every language.
Sometimes, in certain situations, I don’t know what to say to God. But my tears say it all. Thanks for the reminder.
AMEN 🙂
Thanks for thinking this through. We can all relate to the tears of a loved one. But when our loved one is in so much pain we still can feel helpless & hopeless!