Everybody wears a mask, whether it is shiny and colorful or dull and filled with pain. Everybody wears a different mask, it is how we carry ourselves about in our daily lives. I think society has become so cruel and ignorant that there is a necessity to have one. We have realized that most people are shallow, they judge and hate. This is why people feel the need to wear one. It’s the face or person that others see us as and it isn’t our real selves. We wear masks to hide ourselves or make us look better than we really are so that we can feel accepted. On social media for example, people may take fancy pictures in lavish suits and dresses. Or post a picture of them with a super popular and pretty person at their school even though they may not even be friends. We all do things similar to this to show society that we are worth liking and being friends with when truthfully, most things people know about us are false. It is so disappointing to know that everybody including me hasn’t truly revealed who they are behind their masks.

From the fancy Gucci bag you own to the newest Ugg boots, everybody wants to be seen as fashionable and updated. Because if people aren’t, they get made fun of. We pretend to be someone we are not in order to feel more accepted by the people around us. We all want to have friends, be popular, and be good at something. On the outside we do certain things when we know that on the inside, it isn’t something we want to do. Society puts so much pressure on each and every one of us to act a particular way and this is why we wear masks. Masks cover us up so that we can be the same as everybody else and be accepted.

At school I often hear people’s rude comments no a particular person and I think to myself, “You have no idea what that person may be going through in their lives.” People are quick to judge and come to conclusions without understanding others first. And because people are afraid of being picked on, they wear a mask that portrays someone likeable and somewhat sophisticated.

Many people also use masks to hide their true emotions and feelings. Masks are everywhere. Couples may seem happy and in unison when in reality their relationship is crumbling into pieces. A girl may go out of her way to look skinny when all she really wants to do is eat a piece of chocolate. It’s in the hundreds of people who are miserable and broken on the inside but answer “fine” when someone asks, “How are you?”. For them, it’s easier to fake a smile than to explain what’s really happening in their lives underneath their mask.

Maybe it’s because I’m a girl, but I feel like we girls feel more pressure to act and look a certain way. Make up and the different clothing brands we wear all matter to us when it honestly shouldn’t. It shouldn’t matter what we look like on the outside because we are all humans. We are all the same. Skin, hair, eyes and all. We’ve just been so focused on how others perceive us that we are too blind to see the reality. We spend so much time every morning picking out the perfect outfit and trying to look beautiful when the only thing that can make us look beautiful is who we are on the inside.

The world has become so cold that people are afraid of showing their true selves and that is what makes me sad. It is something that we can change. There are two sides to every person and I feel like people are so rude that they only consider the side they see and judge you based on that. Which leads to unfortunately the need to people to be a different person than they truly are. Even I do it. My personality at school in front of my friends and teachers are is very different than when I’m by myself at home. I use a certain mask for different circumstances. Overall, it just amazes me how shallow people have become to make others feel the need to pretend to be someone they are not.

“If we could look into each other’s hearts and understand the unique challenges each of us faces, I think we would treat each other much more gently, with more love, patience, tolerance and care.” -Marvin J Ashton