Years ago, in New Orleans
It was, of course, a blast. After a short time, I didn’t need a mask to make me smile, caught up as I was in the joy of the day.
“Fake it ‘til you make it”, so the saying goes. Today, I am remembering the deep truth underlying that old saw. So often we think that when we want to change our lives, first we have to have a change of heart, we have to get our heads screwed on straight; we think that for change to happen, we have to change from inside out. Trouble is, we can spend so much time working on that inner transformation (or not!) that we never quite get around to changing how we live.
But sometimes it can work the other way around. That what we need to do is put our feet on another path and start walking, need to set our hands to another task and start working. And then find out that the heart and the head will eventually play catch up, and that inner change, which we once found to be so impossible, has happened as if on its own.
So maybe today, if you have been thinking about wanting to make a change in your life but have yet to put your heart into it, just put the mask on. And if want to be a more spiritual person, but have just been waiting until you got that warm spiritual glow to go back to worship, just set your feet on the path down to the local church or synagogue or mosque and go; just set aside a few minutes to be still, to give thanks, and to be open to a sign from beyond yourself; just stop down to the local food pantry or Habitat for Humanity build to lend a hand. Don’t fret about whether you are being authentic or genuine of however else you might want to grade yourself – just go. And who knows, maybe you will find that your mask, instead of hiding your true self,
will be mirroring it.
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