Who Is That Masked Hero?

Not me that is for sure.

One thing I have learned this week is that I HATE face masks. Something about it makes me so uncomfortable that I can’t even make eye contact or, in fact, speak – which is a rare occurrence in my world.

I’m no Sigmund Freud but it’s not hard to unpick.

Concealing my face sends my overwhelming instinct to be liked right out of kilter; with my face covered I cannot be seen to be friendly and with my voice muffled I feel I can’t use that tool either.

Of course, on an intellectual level, I know being universally liked is not only impossible to achieve but also totally unnecessary. My need though, is not even to make friends but quite simply to win people over.

If someone is less than warm, if they even dare to be a little ambiguous, I feel I have failed in some sort of personality test.

I honed certain skills early – as a military child, when you have to join a new school every 2 years, you learn how to tap into people at breakneck speed in order to befriend your new peers. I will adopt accents within 2 sentences and I don't realise that I'm doing it until it's too late - usually at the point at which thet ask me where in Liverpool/Belfast/Bristol/wherever I come from. I've then got to style it out and reign in my newly adopted tone just saying oh we travelled a lot".

Conversely, you also learn not to get attached to your new cohort as you will soon be off again to another base; to slot in with new people in a whole new place

Chocks Away!!

People are all different. As shown in Rorschach’s ink blot experiment, people see different things in the image before them in the same way that humans view each other in different ways too. I perceive myself to be friendly and effervescent but could be interpreted as immature and annoying or just a ole big flirt. Someone who considers themselves to “honest” a “I say it like it is person” could be thought by some to be a hideous pain in the arse, rude, to be avoided at all costs.

I hope what I can see is not a reflection of my inner voice.

As I’ve grown wiser and, may I say older, I no longer try to please everyone and, if someone is being difficult, I will stand my ground but this has taken time and I still have to give myself regular interventional pep talks. In the meantime I might get myself a see through mask … or simply never go out again.

You might well be the juiciest peach in the bowl but not everyone likes peaches.

COVID UPDATE …. COVID UPDATE …COVID UPDATE …

Face masks in shops and public transport were made compulsory on 24/7/20

Covid deaths in UK 45,878

#likemelikeme #military #wisdom