Belly buttons can be beautiful things. They can also become black holes.
Omphaloskepsis was a word coined in the 1920s for personal reflection, or the study of one’s own belly button.
I know this guy, Gus, who concentrates too much on the person he thinks he is or the person he is working hard to become. I find Gus a little boring. You can only study your belly button for so long before you get stuck into thinking that others care as much about the “inner you” as you do. No one else cares that much, with the possible exception of overprotective mothers, and they should cut it out.
When I was going through a major change in my life, I needed to do a bunch of self-reflection. My life was not headed in the right direction, so some serious omphaloskepsis was a good thing. It helped me get on a healthy and productive path.
These days, the only purpose of my belly button is to serve as a guide to where I buckle my belt. I’d hate to be accused of being one of those “young dudes” whose pants are slipping below their hips.