--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was all too aware that there's an…" description: "\"“I was all too aware that there's an unspoken law that you should never start to cry if you have too many reasons to do so. I told myself that my tears..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/455/herta-m-ller-4269_tears_i-was-all-too-aware-that-there-s-an-unsp_2586687.jpg" --- # I was all too aware that there's an unspoken law that you… ![“I was all too aware that there's an unspoken law that you should never start to cry if you have too many reasons to do so. I told myself that my tears were due tot he cold, and I believed myself.” quote by Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/455/herta-m-ller-4269_tears_i-was-all-too-aware-that-there-s-an-unsp_2586687.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/455/herta-m-ller-4269_tears_i-was-all-too-aware-that-there-s-an-unsp_2586687.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/455/herta-m-ller-4269_tears_i-was-all-too-aware-that-there-s-an-unsp_2586687.jpg) > ““I was all too aware that there's an unspoken law that you should never start to cry if you have too many reasons to do so. I told myself that my tears were due tot he cold, and I believed myself.”” [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator suppresses emotional expression by rationalizing tears as physical cold, illustrating self‑control under pressure. **In simple terms:** She hides tears by blaming cold. Key Takeaway Allow authentic emotional expression. Themes psychology self‑control expression Mood introspective empathetic Type psychological personal When to use this quote - mental health - personal growth - stress management - creative writing Key Concepts repression coping mechanisms Questions to Reflect On - Why do we rationalize emotions? - How can we express feelings healthily? A Different Perspective Suppression may harm well‑being. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Tears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tears/) ## Related quotes > [Religion was supposed to be a blanket drawn up to your chin to keep you warm, a promise that when it came to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/religion-was-supposed-to-be-a-blanket-drawn-up-to-your-chin-to-keep/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“One act presses hard upon another, on a path we have no choice but to follow, and each time there are reasons. We do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-abercrombie/one-act-presses-hard-upon-another-on-a-path-we-have-no-choice-but-to/) [Joe Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-abercrombie/) > [“One act presses upon another, on a path we have no choice but to follow, and each time there are reasons. We do what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-abercrombie/one-act-presses-upon-another-on-a-path-we-have-no-choice-but-to/) [Joe Abercrombie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-abercrombie/) > [I want to slowly develope Our truly precious meeting. I want reach you, but I can't. And before I know it, only my fear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/faith-barroa/i-want-to-slowly-develope-our-truly-precious-meeting-i-want-reach-you/) [Faith Barroa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/faith-barroa/) > [“Stay with me, Detta,' he told her through his tears. 'Please don't leave me, I can't bear a world without you in it; you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-a-kuzniar/stay-with-me-detta-he-told-her-through-his-tears-please-don-t-leave/) [M.A. Kuzniar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-a-kuzniar/) > [“He told you not to cry, but tears keep leaking out of your eyes. And you're glad, because those tears belong to you. They're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norma-fox-mazer/he-told-you-not-to-cry-but-tears-keep-leaking-out-of-your-eyes-and/) [Norma Fox Mazer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norma-fox-mazer/) > [After all the lies you told me. After all the tears I shed...i cant say I'm over you 100% But Honey, I can say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/after-all-the-lies-you-told-me-after-all-the-tears-i-shed-i-cant-say/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Only to have a grief equal to all these tears!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/only-to-have-a-grief-equal-to-all-these-tears/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [Astronomers have built telescopes which can show myriads of stars unseen before; but when a man looks through a tear in his own eye,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/astronomers-have-built-telescopes-which-can-show-myriads-of-stars/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [I've seen every one, from Motley Crue to John Denver, with tears running down my face. I had no idea everyone had such a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stevie-nicks/i-ve-seen-every-one-from-motley-crue-to-john-denver-with-tears/) [Stevie Nicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stevie-nicks/) > [Got those moods a swinging, tears a slinging, nothing fits me, when it hits me, ranting, raving, misbehaving, PMS blues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dolly-parton/got-those-moods-a-swinging-tears-a-slinging-nothing-fits-me-when-it/) [Dolly Parton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dolly-parton/) > [Don't trust everyone, because one day you will shed tears of blood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunshine/don-t-trust-everyone-because-one-day-you-will-shed-tears-of-blood/) [SunShine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunshine/) > [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/) [John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/) > [“Witnessing a selfless act brings tears to remind us how we should be treating others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/witnessing-a-selfless-act-brings-tears-to-remind-us-how-we-should-be/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [So when you take those tears, don't look to see I'm alright. …\*Seal - Violet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-nickel/so-when-you-take-those-tears-don-t-look-to-see-i-m-alright-seal-violet/) [Eric Nickel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-nickel/) ## More by Herta Müller > [“And I’m different without you. You’re the only one who thinks you’re never different.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/and-i-m-different-without-you-you-re-the-only-one-who-thinks-you-re/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [Working with language requires beauty for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/working-with-language-requires-beauty-for-me/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“I wanted to work out a trade with things that aren’t alive but aren’t dead either. I wanted to make an emergency exchange, trading…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/i-wanted-to-work-out-a-trade-with-things-that-aren-t-alive-but-aren-t/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [My first book, 'Nadirs,' was very important for me. I'll leave its literary worth for others to judge. But its publication in Berlin in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/my-first-book-nadirs-was-very-important-for-me-i-ll-leave-its/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“I'm drawn outside to the empty yard of the afternoon. The wind tosses thin snow that crackles against my neck. With open hunger the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/i-m-drawn-outside-to-the-empty-yard-of-the-afternoon-the-wind-tosses/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“The cabbage white flies through the tailor's cheek. The tailor sinks his head. The cabbage white flies out of the back of the tailor's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/the-cabbage-white-flies-through-the-tailor-s-cheek-the-tailor-sinks/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“The reasaon I'm shy of objects is because I like them. I transfer the thoughts that are against me onto them. Then these thoughts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/the-reasaon-i-m-shy-of-objects-is-because-i-like-them-i-transfer-the/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“The gym instructor was the first to raise his hand. All the other hands flew up after his. While raising their hands, everybody looked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/the-gym-instructor-was-the-first-to-raise-his-hand-all-the-other/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [I have packed myself into silence so deeply and for so long that I can never unpack myself using words. When I speak, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/i-have-packed-myself-into-silence-so-deeply-and-for-so-long-that-i/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [I never wanted to be a writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/i-never-wanted-to-be-a-writer/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [To combat death you don't need much of a life, just one that isn't yet finished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/to-combat-death-you-don-t-need-much-of-a-life-just-one-that-isn-t-yet/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [Some people speak and sing and walk and sit and sleep and silence their homesickness, for a long time, and to no avail. Some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/some-people-speak-and-sing-and-walk-and-sit-and-sleep-and-silence/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“I wanted love to grow back, like the grass when it’s mown down. To grow differently, if need be, like children’s teeth, like hair,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/i-wanted-love-to-grow-back-like-the-grass-when-it-s-mown-down-to-grow/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [Whatever I read went under my skin. I almost devoured the literature, which became like a road to discovery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/whatever-i-read-went-under-my-skin-i-almost-devoured-the-literature/) [Herta Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) > [“Some say that over time homesickness loses its specific content, that it starts to smolder and only then becomes all-consuming, because it’s no longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herta-m-ller/some-say-that-over-time-homesickness-loses-its-specific-content-that/) [Herta Müller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) [Explore all 92 Herta Müller quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herta-m-ller/) ## More Tears quotes > [So when you take those tears, don't look to see I'm alright. …\*Seal - Violet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-nickel/so-when-you-take-those-tears-don-t-look-to-see-i-m-alright-seal-violet/) [Eric Nickel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-nickel/) > [“Witnessing a selfless act brings tears to remind us how we should be treating others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/witnessing-a-selfless-act-brings-tears-to-remind-us-how-we-should-be/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [Let me tell you that atheism has never painted a masterpiece. Atheism has never dispelled fear. Atheism has never healed a disease; faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hagee/let-me-tell-you-that-atheism-has-never-painted-a-masterpiece-atheism/) [John Hagee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hagee/) > [Don't trust everyone, because one day you will shed tears of blood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunshine/don-t-trust-everyone-because-one-day-you-will-shed-tears-of-blood/) [SunShine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunshine/) > [Got those moods a swinging, tears a slinging, nothing fits me, when it hits me, ranting, raving, misbehaving, PMS blues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dolly-parton/got-those-moods-a-swinging-tears-a-slinging-nothing-fits-me-when-it/) [Dolly Parton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dolly-parton/) > [I've seen every one, from Motley Crue to John Denver, with tears running down my face. I had no idea everyone had such a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stevie-nicks/i-ve-seen-every-one-from-motley-crue-to-john-denver-with-tears/) [Stevie Nicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stevie-nicks/) > [Astronomers have built telescopes which can show myriads of stars unseen before; but when a man looks through a tear in his own eye,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/astronomers-have-built-telescopes-which-can-show-myriads-of-stars/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [Only to have a grief equal to all these tears!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/only-to-have-a-grief-equal-to-all-these-tears/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [Brothers and Sisters, I bid you beware Of giving your heart to a dog to tear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudyard-kipling/brothers-and-sisters-i-bid-you-beware-of-giving-your-heart-to-a-dog/) [Rudyard Kipling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudyard-kipling/) > [ I went to a mosque in Philadelphia with \[my wife\] in December 24, 1999. And we we went to this mosque in Philly, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahershala-ali/i-went-to-a-mosque-in-philadelphia-with-my-wife-in-december-24-1999/) [Mahershala Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahershala-ali/) > [“You have a right to be sad, and a duty to move on. Only wins who wipes the tears, gather strength and move forward.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusto-branco/you-have-a-right-to-be-sad-and-a-duty-to-move-on-only-wins-who-wipes/) [Augusto Branco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusto-branco/) > [“Love is a smoke made with the fume of sighs; Being purg'd, a fire sparkling in lovers' eyes; Being vex'd, a sea nourish'd with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/love-is-a-smoke-made-with-the-fume-of-sighs-being-purg-d-a-fire/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“The past is only making you to spill tears, tears of joy or tears pain. But anyway they are making you sad, for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a/the-past-is-only-making-you-to-spill-tears-tears-of-joy-or-tears-pain/) T.A > [“I lost my chance with you then, and maybe I deserved to, for being too scared to speak up and tell you how I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-harlow/i-lost-my-chance-with-you-then-and-maybe-i-deserved-to-for-being-too/) [Melanie Harlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-harlow/) > [“She allowed herself the luxury of a good cry, figuring that her tears were mingling with the downpour to soak into the soil. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-winegar/she-allowed-herself-the-luxury-of-a-good-cry-figuring-that-her-tears/) [Tracy Winegar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-winegar/) [Browse all 6,956 Tears quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tears/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I was all too aware that there's an unspoken law that you should never start to cry if you have too many reasons to do so. 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