Journey three: Personal Narrative Essay (Revised)

Title: The Chinese Mask Changer

       We wear masks in order to hide our identity. But is hiding oneself the true meaning of the usage in masks? Masks represent us when we where them. The mask indicates our emotions and feelings. It can effect the people around us and make us forget the identity of our true selves. Recently more and more people are using masks in order to make people perceive them as likable and caring. But we shouldn't make people perceive us in a specific way! We should actually be that positive person behind that mask! So I want to tell you a story in which I wore a mask that didn't fit me properly and try to explain how I found my true self.

       “I was 12 when I first noticed that I wore a mask.” It was a new semester and the school began with the normal chit-chat as they were greeting their old friends. At first I thought that this was going to be one of those semesters that I have already experienced. But I couldn’t have been wrong more…A dear friend of mine was getting bullied by bunch of classmates. He was bullied because of his characteristics. He wore the mask of tranquility. He was always calm and spoke very rarely, this characteristic of him enabled other students to bully him without doubt in short he was an easy target. As I knew that these behaviors are intolerable I tried to step up to my dear friend. But my heart couldn’t offer the helping hand. I was too scared of becoming the victim of bullying too. So I began to wear the mask of disregard. I didn’t intend to hide my true feelings of helping him but it slowly came over me. Even as he called me for help I ignored his phone calls of fear and disregard.
 

       Then I began to wonder... "Is this the true me? I was bold and caring! What changed me so much? " As it turns out the answer wasn't too far away! It was because of the mask called fear. I had various masks over my head... I lost my self identity by being a coward. I needed to regain my honor and retrieve my own face. The next day I wrote a letter to my dear friend telling him that I was sorry and will support him no matter what. So from then on if my classmates bullied my dear friend I would stand up next to him telling them to stop. Then something amazing happened. Friends around began to also change and tell the bullies to stop their harassment. As I changed my masks people began to stand next to me and my friend. So the bullying had stopped and I have found my own masks.

       With this experience I have solved two problems on my own. The bullying had stopped and I have found my own mask. I really want to advise people to find their own masks. If we find our own masks the masks of people around us will change in correlation to ours. In the modern days, people change their masks abruptly. The chinese mask changer changes its mask in order to express its feelings better and to find oneself's true identity. We should learn from that. And ask yourselves this. "Do you have your own masks? Is it truly yours? If it is take off the mask and look at the mirror. Does your face look like your mask?"

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