Are We Living in the Twilight Zone?

From coronavirus, murder hornets, racial injustice and the upcoming presidential election...I’m waiting for someone to say, “You have now entered The Twilight Zone.” Growing up and even now I still love the tv show The Twilight Zone. I feel like each episode teaches you a valuable and important lesson. Yes, in some episodes you do have to really think about the meaning of the episode or rewatch it and many times the episode is open for multiple interpretations. One of my favorite episodes, which I believe has a clear message, is the episode titled, “The Masks.”

The episode is set in New Orleans on the night of Mardi Gras where Mr. Jason Foster, a very wealthy old man, is dying. He gets a visit from his daughter Emily and her family—husband Wilfred, son Wilfred, Jr. and daughter Paula. All four have various, terrible traits. It is clear that they are only there in order to claim Jason’s fortune once he dies. He says he has a special Mardi Gras party planned for the little group that night. After dinner, the family gathers in Jason’s study, where he offers them special, one-of-a-kind masks. These masks, which he said are “crafted by an old Cajun,” are very unusual. Jason informs his daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren that a Mardi Gras custom is to wear masks that are the exact opposite of a person’s true personality. He himself wears a skull mask, claiming that the opposite of life is death. The family is reluctant to wear the ugly masks until Jason quotes his demands as a condition from his will; unless all four of them wear the masks and leave them on until midnight, all they will receive from his vast estate is train fare home, so the foursome agree, in spite of their disgust. As the hours tick by, all four beg to be allowed to take off the masks, claiming that they are worse than uncomfortable; they are unbearable. When Jason finally passes away, the foursome rejoice in the fact that they are now rich, but they remove their masks and find, to their horror, that their faces have conformed to the hideous shapes of the masks. When Jason’s mask is removed, it appears as if nothing has changed, but his face is actually the expression of death itself-calm, peaceful and serene.

This year has put many people in circumstances in their life they never thought they would have to face and in many ways we are truly seeing people for who they really are for the first time. Yes people can and will always have different beliefs, but I think what it comes down to is a social understanding of human existence, we are all here to live a fulfilled life, so I believe whether we believe it or not we all wear “masks,” we just have to make sure we wear the right one.