The Yawn

Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate. (C. G. Jung)

A colleague had a strange habit, whenever I talked to him about my professional ideas he started yawning in my face. We played that game for a while until I simply couldn't take it anymore. I decided I would change subjects on him whenever he started yawning and sooner or later I figured that my professional ideas were the problem, so I stopped discussing them with him. Instead, we discussed politics, changes in society and technology, everything in short we both felt passionate about. I never saw the yawn again!

It is incredible what subconscious clues we have access to when we really look, even though our conscious would have nothing to do with it. I am sure that if I told my colleague about this observation he would be really surprised. I am sure that his good conscience tells him that my professional insights are important as well. As it turns out, he is not alone in this dilemma. I had my own personal insights in what is going on beneath the surface when I developed a mild ear infection a few years ago. One day the boys challenged me to dive in the pool and I first resisted it because I know that I have damaged ear drums from having had many ear infections as a child. Still, I did it and of course developed one, even though it was just subtly lingering beneath the surface, so I didn't do anything about it for the longest time. I am almost glad I did, because it taught me a lesson or two.

I developed the most amazing insights thanks to the ear infection. Whenever I was particularly passionate or angry about something, my ear started smelling. It was as if lava was bubbling to the surface. Once I got the hang of cause and effect this little illness alerted me to feelings about people and situations I wouldn't have admitted to myself. I even enjoyed my little feed-back mechanism such as "Oh, I didn't know that I am that passionate about this subject!", or, "Wow, I apparently can't stand her!". Eventually my wife put her foot down and demanded to put an end to all this. I got a small local dosage of antibiotics and after a few days this affliction was nothing but a distant memory. Still, I am grateful for this eye-opener of how much deeper the subconscious is than we imagine.

Look out for the signs that tell you what is truly going on below the hood. They are everywhere.