I look at the people around me and realize that most of us seem to be playing in an endless theater.



I noticed that the most attractive people in my life are those with whom you can sit in the kitchen with a mug of tea and just BE SILENT, and not feel awkward. They don’t try to please, they don’t pretend that everything is perfect for them. They can be tired, funny, strange, but real.

And I also increasingly think that being real is a bit about courage. Because we are so used to hiding behind masks that sometimes it is even scary to take them off. But it is through this sincerity that something real is born. Friendship, love, even just warm memories.

I was walking down the street today and watching everyone rushing somewhere, someone in a suit, someone in sweatpants, someone with headphones. And suddenly I thought: none of them, most likely, think about what makes them truly interesting. Not a car, not clothes, not the number of things on the phone. But this ability to be ALIVE. To smile just like that. To hold someone's gaze. To say honestly that you miss them.

I guess I am still learning this myself. To be yourself without fear that someone will not understand. Not to play roles. Just to live. And it seems to me that the more honest we are with ourselves, the easier it becomes to breathe. :)

And when was the last time you felt that you could be yourself 100%, without any masks?

Ira