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When I was traveling in Venice, Italy, my breath was taken away by the water, the cathedral, the architecture, and among all the shops, the beautiful masks. Venetian masks are famous, representing the fine art and top craftsmanship. In the land of China where I came from, Peking Opera is renowned for its staging, singing, choreograph, and let me mention, the masks, and its stage art “changing masks” where the actor can change up to ten different masks in thirty seconds without trace.
In different cultures, we seem to have masks in one form or another, be it for the purpose of festivity, performance or ritual. Sometimes I wonder about the origin of the masks, and debate if masks is a form which we originally use to express ourselves better, in deeper feelings and thoughts. One time I read a quote from a writer, and it said “through fiction, we see truth.” As an actress in me, I also applaud on movies that confront our emotions.
When I was about eight years old, I wrote a piece in my diary about “masks.” I was rather saddened by the fact that most people are living in masks, pretentious and tiring; and it was a rather depressing social phenomenon in my opinion. Eight years old may be a little too young for writing an article in such depth and sadness, but considering most my childhood was living in the shadows of cultural revolution and my professional acting career started at age seven, such writing was probably explainable.
In a recent event, I ran into this woman who is a famous writer, she was on stage talking about “taking off masks, living in nakedness.” What drove me home was not “nakedness,” but “masks.” Rather than considering “living in masks” a “depressing social phenomenon” as I did when I was eight years old, I came to accept it as a “social phenomenon” without “depressing” on the label. By accepting it, I realize the necessity of “masks” for our daily living, their protection for our being, and their importance to bring the world operate in peace. Nevertheless to say, through “masks,” we may have just revealed our deepest feelings and thoughts in a different perspective.
All of sudden, I come face to face with Lord’s grace. Since I have grown up in a Christian righteous based family, I have grown to love the truth but hate the evil, and disguise the masks that would cover us up for being a genuine and transparent person. In my mind, if it is not a right way of living, then it is wrong, as evident as black and white. It is rather, a difficult path for me to see the covering of grace while remaining righteous. The moment I accept our “living in masks,” I realize He is the one who wants us to live authentically, and He is also the one who accepts us and shows His understanding for us.
As I have admired the Venetian masks, and appreciated the Peking Opera’s stage art of “changing masks,” I begin to understand our “living in masks,” a long but joyful journey to experience the grace God has freely provided for me.