John Marsden Writing Topic #386
‘People talk, act, live as if they’re never going to die. And what do they leave behind? Nothing, nothing but a mask.’ (Bob Dylan) What mask will you leave behind?**
I’ve based my interpretation of this quote on the dictionary definition of ‘mask’. Mask has different dictionary definitions based on history and context, but ultimately, mask means a cover or covering up the real you. My interpretation of this quote was that the mask that people leave behind when they die are their possessions. Whether it is a house, a car, DVDs, certain types of clothes, people always leave possessions behind, which provide their loved ones with an indication of how they lived their lives and even their view of life, but it doesn’t necessarily define them.
The mask I will leave behind are way-too-many DVDs, books, writing, floral arts and various furniture.
**Reference: Marsden J 1998, Everything I Know About Writing, Pan Macmillan, Australia.
Loveday Writing 