I think I may have discovered a revolutionary way to find out the condition of your relationship with others. It's something you may have never expected, but more proof that there is more to the world than meets the eye. What's the secret? Pay close attention when yawning. Who is and isn't yawning after you yawn?

A few days ago, my mother told me about something very interesting she read in Hope magazine, a newsletter she receives at work. The article she read was about why people yawn when others yawn. It's not because it's contagious; it's because we tend to reflect yawns with people we feel sympathetic toward. As a natural skeptic, I didn't believe her at first. Then I thought about the people in my own life. It was true! Think of the people in your life that you may have a bad relationship with. Do you find yourself mirroring their yawns?

Could yawning be one of our spirit's ways for showing compatibility? I'd like to think so. I have a great relationship with my mother and I always mirror her yawns. My sister? Different ball game. Therefore, I wonder if it's possible to test my theory with other people. Will I walk around like an idiot, yawning around to see who yawns back? Maybe.

Bigger picture? I wonder how far we could take this yawning theory. There could be studies done to record whether or not groups of people tend to mirror other groups more than their own. Do religious conservative Christians tend to not mirror a gay person's yawn? Do white man tend to not mirror a black man's yawn? Do men mirror other men's yawn more than women do?

There are many unanswered questions. For now, maybe you wanna join me in yawning around people you know, seeing if they yawn too. Whaddya say? Let's give them something to yawn about.

© Sam Leonard
Life Channels Staff Writer
All Rights Reserved

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