So Many Hats

I am pondering on the all the different hats people wear in one day. For example, we’ll just take a look at all the hats I wore yesterday.  

Work Hat – This is the business casual wearing, avoid cussing, writing and speaking proper English, trying to keep all conversations professional, please and thank you, yes sir and ma’am person.

Friend Hat – This is the going for a walk to chat with my friend. The lean on me and yet opening up to talk about my issues as well. Support and listen, really listen, not just wait patiently for your chance to talk.

Daughter Hat – Chatting with the parents to find out how they are doing, what the plans are, tell them what I’m doing the whole time trying to avoid cussing and giving them

Sports Hat-  Showing the dedication by showing up for soccer practice, running, kicking, chatting, some cussing, aggressive, competitive, enthusiastic , the whole time while still having fun and learning.

Chill Hat – Hanging out having dinner with friends. Sitting back and just hanging with the baby, knowing when to ignore fake tears, watch TV, talk only during the commercial while football is on.  Add friend hat at the same time.

Home Hat – sitting on the couch watching TV, playing on the computer, knowing I should be scrubbing my tub that I’ve been successfully avoiding. I am the lover of all things soft and fluffy like puppies and my stuffed animals a hula hopper in the living room and cereal aficionado.

I guess my pondering isn’t so much as the different hats is much as what keeps them from becoming masks?  I can wear multiple hats any day of any week at any point. What worries me is being lost under all those hats. Is there, even a true self? Is it the Chill Hat? Maybe the Daughter Hat? I know that the older I get it I will have more hats like Wife Hat, Career Hat vs my Job Hat, Mom Hat, or Dog Owner(hopefully sooner rather than later) Hat, all to be add with my other hats like Aunt Hat, Sister Hat, Bookworm Hat, Runner Hat, Writer Hat, Pondering Hat etc.  

The first thought that comes to my head is to be true to thy self. But clearly, after just pondering a few of these hats, I am not sure if I am ever totally hatless. If there were not hats  would I just be a brown eyes, curly hair, 5’2” flesh bag of bones? Or maybe all these hats make up thy self? Maybe the challenge or pondering isn’t to find the hatless self as much as just a balanced self? Maybe the way to keep the hats from becoming masks is to keep them proportional and evenly stacked? As long as one of the hats, like the Work Hat doesn’t become too big and it stays in place then I don’t have to worry about them growing, consuming the other hats and becoming the mask? Is the answer to this self analysis the same as it is for eating and drinking? Always, always, always in moderation? Does that mean each and every one of these hats are needed to make up Thy Self, which is a multi-dimensionally and probably not color coordinated stack, that sits on top of this flesh bag of bones? Today, I shall lean towards yes. Tomorrow, is another day, and another set of hats.