[Brinkmanship: the art or practice of pushing a dangerous situation or confrontation to the limit of safety especially to force a desired outcome--Merriam Webster Online]

Does this definition even apply to me or to my f-i-l? Why do my eyes always well up with tears at the slightest or even imaginary provocation? Am I on the brink? I was reading about Alistair Cooke, and my eyes welled up at a sentence I thought up on reading some of his quotes: 'Getting universal truths across using gentle humor'. Why did I choke up at this thought? Is it because it reminds me of my father, or is it because that philosophy is important to me, to become like that one day? Maybe, it's just the last stage of depression, pleading for some action/therapy/shoulder/ear/something.