Tuesday 12 August 2014

Beloved of God


Most of us don masks every day
Sometimes, even, more than one at a time
We don them for protection
-of ourselves and others.
More often than we'd care to admit,
wearing a mask is a good thing
acting as a filter
preventing us from revealing 
the myriad emotions
waging war to be released
Hiding our insecurities
Freeing us to act.
Our masks keep us mute
stifle the screams
that might otherwise escape
They mould our expressions
into polite engagement
veiled indifference 
or even outward confidence.
They direct our speech
into banal banter
and, occasionally, side splitting humour
All of it real
but none of it authentic
They prevent us from being outed
as shallow or complex
straightforward or intricate
And then we endeavour to become
the mask that we wear.
Becoming the persona we portray
is deceptively easy
Until it's not.
For when the mask slips
or, even worse, shatters,
we fail to recognise
who we are
and have little energy
for getting to know 
ourselves once more.
And, before we know it,
we are fashioning a new mask
for ourselves
and for others.
And the God who created us in love 
weeps at the knowledge
that we do not love ourselves enough
to simply be who we are.
Beloved children of God
Cradled in love
that reaches beyond every mask 
soaking up the sorrow we hide
and the joy we subdue
gently encouraging us to discard
the persona
we present to the world
and make friends
with the beloved creatures God created us to be.

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