Masks

                            

All people wear masks. It is just that simple. We do that. We do it to hide something. Something we wouldn't want anybody to see.

There are these balls where people wear masks because it is oh so exciting to not really see what is behind the mask. Who is behind the mask.

Jaques Lacan called this the „cultural imaginary“. The way I understand it is, when you look into the mirror, everything you see is your own interpreted image that you have of yourself. You see what you want to see, because what you see is „your life“. By looking into the mirror I see myself, acknowledge myself.

Now let's say you wear a mask. So you look into the mirror and all you see is a face wearing a mask. You are curious. You are desperate to find out what is behind the mask? Who is this person? What is he / she really like?

So, what am I really like? What are my friends really like? I said before that everyone's wearing a mask. So, do I really know what is going on with my closest friends? My family members?

And now: How much do my friends and family really know about me?

Let's say you're going through a rough patch. It's just one of these phases you're not able to shake off that easily. But what you do is: you smile! Because that's your thing. You smile. It's just so easy to smile. And a smile tells everyone: I'm ok. Your mask is this glittery, pink, happy-face. And it helps. It gets you through the day. Because, as the day ends, you made it. You kept your cool. You were happy.

At least your mask was.

And then you look into the mirror. And you imagine all the good things and all the beauty of soul into what you see in the mirror. That's the good thing about masks: You don't have to be right. It's not about truth. It's about the imaginary. What you want to see you will see. What you don't want to see doesn't exist.

But your mask is crumbling. And after staring into the mirror for a long time, the mask is gone. And what is left is you. And you don't like it. Because there is nothing glittery, nothing pink or happy about that image. And you realize: I don't want that to be me. I want to be different. But without a mask.

So, masks help us to get through a rainy day, they hide our secret feelings, shadows of the past or anything else we wouldn't want anybody to see. But we have to be able to take off that mask at the end of the day, knowing who we are, even without the safety of the mask. And we need to be happy with what we see in the mirror while taking off the mask. Because, yes, we all have our secrets, we all have our problems and we should all be allowed to hide them from other people. But we should never hide them from ourselves. We should never leave the mask on too long.