Exposing the Naked Truth Before Others
Dear Cynthia: My husband and three men I don’t know are sitting at a table in a hotel. I enter the lobby--completely naked--and start talking to the front desk clerk. The others can see me and look a little embarrassed--and a little interested. Next, my husband looks up, sees me and gives me a very disapproving look. That’s when I notice I’m naked, so I reach behind myself, grab my robe and put it on. I am a little uncomfortable, but not much, so I continue the conversation with the desk clerk.
The men at the table have lost interest and go back to their meal. My husband is suddenly sitting in a swing on the front porch, so I sit beside him and tell him how sorry I am, that I always go naked after a shower and just didn’t remember to put the robe on. He is angry and yells at me, saying I did this deliberately. I feel I’ve been judged unfairly and am frustrated that I can’t make him understand my innocence.
--SHARE STARWAS
Lytle Creek, Calif.
Dear Share: The shower represents coming clean, a symbol of telling the truth or confessing something. But you continue to expose the naked truth in front of others afterward, and that is a bit uncomfortable for your husband.
You say that the other men are a little interested--and a little embarrassed. This sounds like a normal response when someone confesses to something, a part of us is titillated, intrigued, and another part is embarrassed for the person--especially if what is revealed is of an especially personal nature.
It is always best to tell the truth. A great deal of anxiety and even illness is caused by holding onto untruths or struggling to keep things covered up. However, when another person is involved in what is being confessed, it may put them in a very uncomfortable position. You may not have considered his feelings or the consequences.
A porch swing is a wholesome image. Perhaps he feels that his image is tarnished by your disclosure. A hotel represents a temporary situation, but the lobby is a public one. Perhaps you shared a bit too much at a party attended by business associates or colleagues.
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Cynthia Richmond is the author of “Dream Power, How to Use Your Night Dreams to Change Your Life” (Simon & Schuster, 2000). Fax your dreams to Cynthia Richmond at (818) 783-3267 or e-mail them to in.your.dreams@worldnet.att.net. Please include your hometown and a daytime phone number. In Your Dreams appears every Tuesday and should be read for entertainment purposes only.