Masks
Prompt 04.05
In what situations do you find yourself adjusting, concealing, or reshaping who you are? Not in a dramatic, double-life kind of way—but in the subtler shifts: the silence in a meeting, the laugh that’s a little too agreeable, the truth withheld because the room doesn’t feel ready.
We all wear masks. Sometimes to protect ourselves. Sometimes to belong. Sometimes simply to get through the day without triggering someone else’s radar. As Odysseus knew well, identity isn’t always fixed—it can be a tool, a shield, even a strategy for finding our way back home.
But over time, wearing the mask too long can make it hard to remember where the mask ends and you begin. Authenticity doesn’t always mean radical transparency—it means knowing when you’re hiding out of wisdom… and when you’re hiding out of fear.
This week, consider where you’re feeling most like yourself—and where you’re not. What would it take to loosen the mask, just a little? Not to rip it off, but to breathe more freely underneath it.