Tears are words the heart can't express

Yesterday I spoke with Kate. Something had happened in the past few days that she said "made her sad about Jim." She repeated that phrase often during the retelling of her story. As I struggled for words to express the overwhelming sorrow and sympathy in my heart for her, I realized how inadequate words really are for my family right now. I knew in the depth of my soul that "sad" wasn't anywhere close to what Kate felt. I also knew that the "I'm so sorry" that I kept repeating in response wasn't anywhere close to the sorrow I was trying to express. Sadness and sorrow are like colors - they can be light, dark, muddied, vivid, mottled... I only had my heart to understand the color of her sadness and I hope that her heart saw the color of my sorrow. I cried last night because I just couldn't find the words; my sadness and sorrow overwhelming my brain and it's capacity for language. I so wanted her to know that I got it, I felt it in my heart, I understood what she was telling me, but the words failed me. In the end, I hope our heart did their parts and Kate knew the color of my sorrow.