Masks-Do They Help Me or Hide Me?

At a discussion group meeting I attend each week the topic was Masks, and although it sounds simple enough, we began to have the following questions:

How many masks do we wear or have we worn?

What masks do we utilize?

Do we change masks as we grow older?

Do masks hide us, protect us, liberate us?

Who are we without masks?

Can we eliminate all masks?

This dialogue put me to wondering about the personas I have employed from an early age to assist, shield, sway, and express myself to others.

I’ve thought of myself as authentic, but in the context of this subject I realize I have engaged many covers; some pretty, some ugly, some truthful, and some not. For instance, I employ the jester role  in many situations, grabbing up a clown mask to make a joke of a serious situation, or to ease tensions.

Other veneers I have donned are through my life are wife, mother, employer, employee, friend, foe, caregiver, child, sister…well, you get the idea.

I can be coy,                                   or a wicked witch,

                

a grumpy old woman,                   and on a rare occasion a bit sophisticated.

                                

 

                     A gentle soul,                                                    and at one time a crossed-eyed teenager.

                             

 

 I’m a mixed bag and I have multiple facades that serve me when needed.

The list could go on and on, but the reality is I show different sides of me depending on whom I’m with, who I want to be with, what I’m doing, and of course, how I feel.

I’ve used masks to hide my true feelings, often to protect myself (or others). I can act sympathetic when in fact, I’m probably silently questioning, “what the heck were you thinking?”

Or, I can whip out the disciplinarian guise to enforce proper behavior traits, only to resort to the same acts behind closed doors.

Small children possess few masks, reacting naturally to circumstances and situations…until they are taught what works and what doesn’t. As the words in the song from South Pacific note, “we have to be carefully taught”.

Lyrics from South Pacific ‘You’ve Got to be Carefully Taught’

You’ve got to be taught
To hate and fear,
You’ve got to be taught
From year to year,
It’s got to be drummed
In your dear little ear
You’ve got to be carefully taught.
You’ve got to be taught to be afraid
Of people whose eyes are oddly made,
And people whose skin is a diff’rent shade,
You’ve got to be carefully taught.
You’ve got to be taught before it’s too late,
Before you are six or seven or eight,
To hate all the people your relatives hate,
You’ve got to be carefully taught!

I am afraid of ‘honest’ people, they scare the heck out of me. They may tell me the truth, and, heaven forbid, I would hate that. I don’t want reality to impede on my life, forcing me to look at the facts. Save me from candor. Give me dishonesty! I’m more comfortable living with illusion.

I ask myself if I can live without any of my shrouds: barefaced, real, raw, and truthful?  There is an advantage to being in a different country, or maybe even in a different city. All the wardrobes, disguises, and covers can be released because no one knows who I was before, not even me.

Today I’m rediscovering myself and finding who is behind all those veils. That my friends can be an uncomfortable examination.

 

So I ask you, what masks do you wear? And do you feel naked without one?

 

(Editor’s Note: I have added to and reworded a few paragraphs of the blog that I posted earlier today. The changes are in italics.)