by: Sarah Zanger
After spending another dreary winter Sunday with not much to do I decided our family needed an exciting activity. I thought I needed a break from planning dinner so I'd give myself a break and give them an activity.

I told my children that they were in charge of dinner tonight. They'd each need to prepare one part of the meal- their choice. Three of my four children were home and quite excited about the prospect of dinner plans. Even my sixteen year old son, who only gets excited about playing hockey was in to it. My husband wasn't as keen on the idea.

Each of my children started their dinner plans. They ran to the computer to locate good recipes. I sent them to Simply Delicious ( http://dateable.com/simplydelicious) where they found some good recipes. They pulled out cookbooks and ran to find their supplies. Of course, what I thought would be a treat for me turned into a bit of extra work but watching everyone scurrying around the kitchen was fun.

My husband didn't realize I meant business and when he returned to the kitchen I told him if he wanted dinner he too needed to bring something to the meal. He's not much of a cook so he took out our dusty juice maker and went to work. He used up a good amount of old fruit and resurrected the use of the juice maker.

What started out as a boring Sunday became a wonderful way for our family to spend quality time together. The kids learned some new recipes and we're back to using our juice maker!!


About The Author


Sarah Zanger is a freelance writer and mother of four. She is an editor at Dateable.com. Dateable.com is an exciting online community for singles, couples and romance lovers. Dateable.com has romantic resources, advice, poetry, message boards, event postings, greeting cards, contests, personals, opinion polls and more. You can visit Dateable.com at http://dateable.com

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by: Marla Sloane, Ph.D.



Halloween is a great time to wear a mask and set aside your inhibitions to become somebody else for a short time. It’s a lot of fun because you get to choose who you want to be. On this one particular night, you can be someone totally different from how others see you and it is accepted. You can be anything you want from Frankenstein to Einstein or from Cinderella to the Chainsaw Killer. But what if someone else chooses the disguise for you? In our lives we are faced with this dilemma all the time. People will try to give us masks to wear, and in the right situation we will be willing to wear them.

When we are children our parents have certain expectations of what they expect of us. We are told that we are expected to go to college and become someone special. We are taught to have manners and to respect others. We are advised to obey laws and to set lofty goals. These set of expectations are healthy and positive. Oh, if only we were that lucky to have these sets of masks! What happens if our parents put a different expectation on us? “You will never grow up to be anybody.” “Your mother and I expect you to run the family business.” “Since you are a girl, you really don’t need an education.” “You are such a disappointment in the family.” “You just can’t do anything right can you?” When we hear these kinds of words from our parents, we have a different vision of our potential. We will do anything to make them right. Our subconscious mind is wired that way. We will wear those masks to make others happy and in return we will feel that we have earned their love. These maskshowever are destructive and limiting. But since they are so subliminal we put them on and act out that character to perfection. We will wear a mask to fit into society. We will wear a mask to be accepted and loved by our families. We will wear a mask to have our spouses be proud of us. These masks, unlike the Halloween masks are invisible, yet very powerful. These masks are harder to take off because they are hidden and somehow along the way we have made them part of our psyche. If the mask doesn’t fit and we want to take it off, now there are consequences involved. If I remove my mask will I still be loved? If I remove my mask will they find out that I am an imposter? “If I remove my mask I won’t feel safe anymore.” Isn’t this the age old fear: what if I’m just myself and they don’t like me?

After wearing many masks growing up, I discovered that we have two choices in life. We can choose security or we can choose freedom. Security involves going with the flow and not making any waves; being accommodating and wearing the masks that are expected. There is certainly nothing wrong with this choice; but it is safe, and since very few risks are involved, there is little chance for growth. The other choice is freedom. Freedom involves removing your masks. Freedom is living life on your terms, but this requires risk and the high potential of failure before you get it right. When you remove your mask, you will automatically change the dynamics of your relationships; some will improve and some will end. The fear of losing certain people in our life is too much of trepidation to bear; therefore we place the mask back on. It is like the battered wife that goes back to her abusive husband. She knows that is not the best choice, but because of fear and the risk of losing hersecurity she goes back. The gay community faces this predicament; do I come out and remove my mask or keep things safe, just as they are? Children from close knit families have these decisions; do I make my parents happy and work in the family business or do I defy them and choose my own career? It’s all about the masks we wear and the choices we make and our choices will create our future.

Halloween is a night of choosing a mask that can be an adventure for one evening, but it can also make us conscious of the masks we wear in our real lives. While we are having fun on this ghoulish occasion it can give us insight to discovering who we really are and who we aspire to be. The important thing to remember is that a mask can be a good thing as long as it fits and it is our choice.

Marla Sloane, Ph.D.

About The Author
Marla Sloane, Ph.D. is the author of The Masks We Wear and How to Live Without Them. She is also a sought after expert providing phone counseling sessions and has an extensive background in Psychology, Clinical Hypnotherapy, and Neuro Linguistic Programming. She has written numerous articles about releasing stress, how to find your authentic self, and the importance of living in your truth. You can contact Dr. Marla at Marla@marlasloane.com.



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