The Mask

As children, you enjoy dressing up and pretending to be someone else. You place a mask over your face and act differently so as to disguise your identity. It is childhood fun. You have a special holiday set aside for it and adults join in the games as well. It is something set aside for special occasions, yet something you never outgrow and something you do every day.

For different occasions there are different masks. There is one you might wear to your workplace, particularly if you work with the public. You might wear a different mask when you visit family, or when you spend time with friends.

These masks are part of who you are. They are acceptable to wear if you are trying to get along with people. You cannot always be what very person wants all of the time.

That's why you enjoy dressing up and pretending. It is harmless fun when all parties know that it is a game, or a personality truce is declared to keep peace in a family or workplace. The danger is when one party believes that the mask is the true face and the other uses it to deceive. Con artists and thieves are known to employ this strategy.

Sometimes, it is yourself whom you deceive. When you think you want something, or someone, and do not act from your heart, but as who you think you need to be to get it. When you achieve your goal, the victory feels hollow.

Naturally, for it is not what "you" wanted, nor were "you" the one to get it. As with all of life on Earth, the secret is balance. Try on a new personality on occasion to see how it feels, but when it comes to things like love relationships, careers and your soul's path, take off your mask and be yourself. Then the real party can begin. ~Silas

Jinnzania's side notes: The more I grow up, the more I enjoy playing. There are those who believe that it is beneath them to do this. These are the people I don't completely trust. Oh, there are exceptions, but I find that those I play dress up with are some of my closest friends, I know when the masks come off, I'm dealing with a real person, with a unique heart and soul. Those who wouldn't dream of the indignity of this type of play, wear their own kind of mask, most of the time and not for a good purpose.

One person I had a relationship with was like this. We would attend an event where costumes were allowed, and he would wear street clothes. I adopted this custom as well as I was deceiving myself to believe that he was "the one". One such event, I came early, in street clothes, and he arrived later in costume. I was thrilled to see him lighten up until I realized that a new business associate of his was at the event, in costume. As they were still in the "wooing" phase of their working relationship, he was playing the part very convincingly.

The next year, after we'd split, I showed up at the same event, in a costume. My friends designed it for me and I was quite proud of it. When I walked in the door, I realized that no one else was wearing a costume, only me. So, I paid my admission fee and danced until my feet hurt. I've learned over the years, that I have a wacky, fun-loving side. With my "stick in the mud" influence gone, I could put on a costume and take off my "normal" mask. That's just who I am, really.