Appearance and Reality: Animation shows how we hide our true feelings from the world

Elena Rogova's Appearance and Reality is a clever short story that tackles something we can all relate to: the difference between the feelings we show to the world and our hidden true feelings. It's like as we grow up, we put on a mask to suppress our feelings to look cool or appear strong or whatever. Screw that.

Sure, growing up teaches you a few things and adds wrinkles to emotions but sometimes, life is more enjoyable when you take that mask off.

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Comment: It's not so much just 'taking the mask off'. Not expressing our true selves is what stops real, healthy development in the first place. It's possible to 'grow up' without becoming a jerk! G.I. Gurdjieff said:

A small child has no personality as yet. He is what he really is. He is essence. His desires, tastes, likes, dislikes, express his being such as it is. But as soon as so-called 'education' begins personality begins to grow. Personality is created partly by the intentional influences of other people, that is, by 'education,' and partly by involuntary imitation of them by the child itself. In the creation of personality a great part is also played by 'resistance' to people around him and by attempts to conceal from them something that is 'his own' or 'real.' Essence is the truth in man; personality is the false. But in proportion as personality grows, essence manifests itself more and more rarely and more and more feebly and it very often happens that essence stops in its growth at a very early age and grows no further.