Courtesy of the authorMy dad taught me do things like change oil and stand up for myself. But he was also in-tune with his feminine side and had no problem crying in front of me. I learned so much by seeing him show his emotions and cry. Growing up in the US, the message was clear: masculine traits, such as aggression, discipline, and logic, are held in the highest esteem, and feminine traits, such as compassion, intuition, and creativity, are devalued.