I am Joe's .....

People of my generation may remember that Readers Digest was a popular magazine in the sixties and seventies. Our family subscribed to the magazine in the hope that the children could improve their English. Of particular interest to me was the regular feature on certain part of the body entitled "I am Joe's ....." (Brains or stomach or heart etc). The feature was written in the voice of the body part explaining its function. What was more interesting was how the organ expressed its dismay over Joe's neglect or unhealthy habits which were detrimental to its well being. In a first person's voice the body part would express frustrations or anger at Joe's ignorance and inability to take care of his own body.

This feature could not be more relevant today than before. This is especially true for the youngsters who live a lifestyle as if there is no tomorrow. They deprive their body from adequate rest, intoxicate themselves, stretch their limits; all in the name of grasping opportunities to achieve success or maximizing experiences in life. Not listening to their body they also lose touch of themselves.When you read the life story of a body part in first person, it evoked in you sympathy and respect for your body. So for example when Joe's heart cringed in pain because Joe wasn't watching his stress level and suffered a heart attack you really felt its pain and began to appreciate your own heart.

In Jungian psychology the shadow represents the unconscious aspect of our personality that our conscious ego can not recognise or refuses to acknowledge. When repressed and ignored too much it may break out in pathological behaviour. But what tall order to get people of today's world to listen to their unconscious mind. What I am lamenting is, even the tangible, physical, obvious, highly visible body that we walk around in is being ignored. ( Gosh I must be really exhausted having to watch over my husband like a hawk so that he does not consume things detrimental to his health ! ). Aaah.. now I know why the article talks about a MAN's body part (ie. Joe's this and that; mind you NOT Josephine's). It is because men are bigger culprits in denying their body of respect.

Incidentally Thich Nhat Hanh describes our high-consumption lifestyle as a means to avoid acknowledging our body, our mind and our feelings. So even when we have some time on hand instead of spending some quiet time listening to ourselves, we are afraid maybe to face the "vacuum" inside us. So we go out and try to fill the void by buying new and exciting things be it consumer goods, food or excitement and addictions in their various forms.

The good news is once we start allotting some "quiet time" on a daily basis, that becomes an addiction too, a good one that is. With that habit we may be able to hear the murmurings of the body parts within us as well. Who knows they may one day be saying "Good Job, Joe" or  more likely "Good Job Josephine" !