Halloween is a time when people can pretend to be someone else, something else, and perhaps even live out a fantasy for a day…. and it’s got me thinking… what masks do we commonly wear?
While it’s fun wearing a mask on Halloween, to play a different character for a while, to live out a little fantasy, to create a little mystery. It’s not as much fun to mask our true authentic selves on a daily basis — It’s exhausting really.
When we are not 100% truthful with others, when we try to hide our feelings, when we suppress our thoughts, we put on a mask. After a while, the mask becomes smothering, difficult to breath in, and causes deep resentment and bitterness. The further away we travel from our Source , our true selves, the more anxiety and discontentment we experience.
So what masks do we wear? Well, like all masks, they come in different shapes, sizes, colors… but they all serve the same purpose – to create an illusion.
I’ve discovered a few masks I often wear:
The “It’s O
The “I
When I first started using these masks, I thought they were beautiful and ornamental, clever really. But the more I used the masks, and felt the ill effects from wearing them, I saw them for what they really were – ugly, hideous and menacing.
And the purpose I thought they served, the illusion of something more beautiful, more honorable, more desirable than my own truth… was a mirage. The true beauty lies within. “To thine own self be true!” was my humble statement as I took off the mask.
I was once afraid of people saying, “Who does she think she is?” Now I have the courage to stand and say, “This is who I am.”–Oprah Winfrey
So Wild Ones …. which masks are you wearing – and which will be coming off today?
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