Even though we understand that each of us keeps secret from others a large portion of who we are, much of the time we try to act as though we have nothing to hide. Of course, no one is expected to go out in public fully exposing his or her true self. That unadorned self is reserved or the private occasions of intimate meetings with trusted family members, personal friends, and selected lovers.
The mask worn by the social self is an attempt to live up to the community standards, to be the sort of person our family and friends expect us to be. Although these disguises may help up get through some of life’s social situations more smoothly, like any impersonation they require our continued attention. The more often we wear a mask, and the less the mask is like our real self, the more vigilance is required, and the more of our valuable creative energy is used up to maintain the illusion that we are who we appear to be.
If we take off masks we have worn too long, some parts of our faces may come off with them.