The Mask of Normal
Children put their costumes away after Purim. The adults put theirs back on.
The masks go back in the box after Purim.
At least the children’s masks do.
Plastic crowns.
Fake beards.
Cheap swords already bent from too many pretend battles.
They get shoved into a drawer or strewn over the playroom floor until Pesach cleaning forces someone to deal with them.
But something else happens the morning after Purim.
The children may take their masks off.
But you.
You put yours back on.
The careful tone.
The acceptable opinions.
The respectable smile that signals everything is fine.
Normal.
Everything returns to its assigned place.
Not a speck of dust visible.
Prim.
Proper.
The room becomes quiet again.
And something inside you goes back into hiding.
