Taking off Your Mask Post-COVID

Countries are slowly and gradually reopening their borders. Economies are ready to steamroll for a catch-up. Roads downtown are starting to get cluttered with angst drivers whacking their horns while running late for work. In the office, masks and social distancing measures ensured that our co-workers filtered out the office gossips and chatterbox at minimum decibels. We have just begun to adapt to the new norms of livelihood since the lockdown was implemented, but now some of these are gladly being ready to be cast aside in preparation to welcome the return to normalcy.

It will ultimately transit back to square one, although there is some alteration of practices. Humans are social creatures after all — we crave companionship, dates out, physical intimacy, and deep and meaningful connections. In the coming months, we are going to cut down on some technologically social connectivity and make it up for lost time on physical social connectivity that we missed out for the past few months. We will be excited to meet people again, have a sit-down meal, and catch up.

It’s time to unmask

When the infection rate dives, we may soon be able to take off the face mask(legally). It’s perhaps one that you can’t wait to take it off from your face. Ohhhhh that’s gonna be so much of a relief. The added resistance to your breathing, the cause of pimples outbreak and tanned lines will be gone, and your speech clarity will finally be back to normal. The physical mask that we have been wearing to protect us is finally leaving us. Now, what about the other mask that we have been wearing for years?

The invisible mask

I called it the invisible mask because it’s really invisible. At its best, it only allows people to see us in how we want to be perceived. Beneath every invisible mask which portrays our glamorous appearance — our sparkling white teeth, brushed face, and colored lipstick contained tonnes of misery, secrets, ill intentions, and feelings that were untold being wary to be unfold.

Reflections

I’m sure that many of us have spent some of our work-from-home time during the lockdown pondering over how should we do a ‘restart’ after COVID. It is common for us to lay out new directions and plans, goals, expectations, and aspirations after a pessimistic period. We all want to do better, be better, and go full throttle to be optimistic again.

The things that went through your mind might be something of a greater impact on your immediate needs, employment, upskilling, or household matters. Essentials! Maybe these were more important to you at this juncture than how you want to live your life in the future. I fully support and back your worries. Everyone goes through different circumstances and I am in no positive to get them off your mind. Neither should and will I.

Perhaps being luckier, I retained my job and I am still able to fulfill the immediate needs of my household. Thus, these were the reflections that I thought about instead on how to be accountable to myself.

Have we shown a different side of our personality online and offline to people?
Have we previously splurge on friends’ and colleagues’ gathering, only to mull over it in your bed that we shouldn’t have paid for it?
Have we secretly wished for something bad to happen to someone in a situation so that we could get in and benefit from it?
Have we talked behind our friends’ and colleagues’ back only to pretend that everything’s alright in their presence?
Have we made up or boasted about our qualifications, achievements, and situations to others to make ourselves look good?
Knowingly, or unknowingly degraded the other party?
Go around spreading fake news and negativity about other people.
Unethically wrestled something away which is important to the other, undeservingly.

How to lead a happier and fulfilled life?

We all knew how exhaustive it is to lead a life of pretense — a lie to mask another lie, a lie to boost your ego, your feelings, and needs. Sometimes things eventually get out of hand and escalated beyond our expectations. To truly lead a happier and fulfilled life, we need to set the invisible mask free. Take them off, face the world bare and real. In return, you will gain these that will be more tangible in your life.

Real friends and colleagues (who won’t leave you when your mask fell off)
Like-minded people who were also mask-free
Helping hands for being truthful to others
Deeper and lasting relationships with people
Meaningful conversations with people
Better opportunities in life such as employment

It takes courage to be willing to restart at square one from the elevated platform that we had staged ourselves though the invisible mask. However, people around us will find us more approachable, real, and more willing to step out for us once we take off the mask. Psychologically, our lives will be lighter, less stressful, and more connected. Is that the optimal life that we wanted? It’s ain’t that difficult.

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Previously published on “Change Becomes You”, a Medium publication.

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