“Even in laughter the heart may ache, and rejoicing may end in grief.” One thing is certain: a happy event doesn’t take away the emptiness of the soul. When your heart is aching, laughter can be a welcome relief, but it’s often superficial compared to the ache inside. People even laugh as they converse with each other at a wake. It doesn’t mean your heart isn’t aching.
Surface realities aren’t the whole story and may hide more difficult and painful feelings. According to Ecclesiastes (7.2, 3, 4, 6), sorrow better reflects reality than joy. (Then again, that’s just the writer of Ecclesiastes being cynical!) But it certainly is true that there is a significant difference between people on the surface and people on the inside. That’s no surprise to anyone, I know. It’s a proverb, though, and this one isn’t an advice-giving one. It’s just expressing a reality that is too familiar to most of us. Nothing in life is guaranteed, and when the heart aches, it takes more than a good joke to heal.
My heart still grieves for my lost grandsons – one died 3 years ago, and the other one last year. My heart aches mainly for my daughter as they are her sons. But I also have joy in knowing they are at peace, in Heaven
I’m so sorry to hear of your pain. Losing two grandsons is agonizing. I can understand how your heart aches. If there weren’t a heaven, we’d have no hope and no consolation. With Heaven, we can even learn to smile.