The gentle untruths we weave around ourselves.
The brave face we present to the world.
A wise colleague speaks of this persona as our Butcher's Shop Persona. Who's noticed that all butcher's seem to have the same jolly, maybe teasing and a bit flirty, way of meeting and greeting? We're not all butchers, but we all have our own version of a cheery face that we present to the world.
There's definitely a place for this cheery face. This slightly unreal mask we don we we step out into the world of social interactions. It helps us slide through the myriad of faces and situations we bump into in our days.
But how deeply does the mask enter into us?
Can we find our deeper real self beneath? Can we know when to step away from it? Can we find people to share the more thoughtful and vulnerable us with?
The danger is that we forget how to do that.
All too easily our lives can become plastic and insincere. Our masks can become so deeply attached to us that our real Self gets smothered. The danger is that we can lose our vulnerable self, and that Pretend People abound instead.
A great remedy is to nurture deep and sustaining relationships with people we trust. Through honest and sustaining relationships we can ensure we resist becoming plastic and insincere. In this way we can still draw on the benefits of the cheery Butcher's Shop persona, while we anchor ourselves in emotional honesty.
Sustaining relationships keep us honest, real and sincere.
Arohanui.
Contact me: Lorraine Dodd: Counsellor in Howick, Auckland 0221 874 057, through the contact section http://lorrainedodd.wix.com/lorraine-dodd by email nurturinghope@gmail.com or Private Message me through Facebook
