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27 March 2026

Posted by Susan L. Edser

Past, present and future

The last session of the six-week pilot, inspired by the group’s name, Mask Off, explored what lies beneath the masks the women wear. To do this, our morning focused on writing about their past, present, and future lives, using exercises and prompts to help them.

I began by sharing an old photo of myself at around eleven years old, dressed in shorts and a T-shirt, holding my pet chicken, Dodger. I talked about who I was then, before I learned to behave in certain ways to fit in with those around me. I invited the women to consider when they felt most themselves as children and asked whether there was a place where they felt safest, a person who accepted them as they were, or a pet they loved. Ultimately, who were they before they learned to mask? We discussed what they had remembered and how they found writing about that time.

Then we moved on to considering the present and who they are now as adults. I asked them to think of themselves metaphorically as a garden.  Would they be well-maintained or derelict? Would they have garden features, such as a patio, fountain, or play equipment? Would there be a secret garden within their main garden? The women used felt-tip pens to draw their gardens, and then shared them. The visual representation helped them see themselves differently, and they were surprised by what they drew. The writing exercise was to describe their pictorial garden, explaining the features, such as the hedges, vegetable garden, and entertaining spaces.

Finally, the participants reached out to a future version of themselves, a few years ahead or long into old age. I suggested that they write a letter from their future self to themselves now. I asked, ‘What would she tell you?’ and ‘What would you want answered?’ This was a powerful exercise that enabled them to have an alternative perspective on their current lives. They kept the contents private but shared key sentences.

These exercises may also help you consider your unmasked self, so please feel free to try them out. My advice to the Mask Off women was to only go as far as they felt comfortable, and I offer the same advice to you, too. 

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