Lessons Learned From Cemetaries and Horses

     I am really enjoying Aesop's Fables.  I've come across another one that inspired me:  The Horse and Groom. 
     A GROOM used to spend whole days in currycombing and rubbing down his Horse, but at the same time stole his oats and sold them for his own profit. “Alas!” said the Horse, “if you really wish me to be in good condition, you should groom me less, and feed me more.”
     How many of us care more what the world thinks of us than what God thinks?  Even though I care more what God thinks most of the time, vanity sneaks in once in a while.  I justify my claim to lack vanity wearing glasses.  They are more practical and I can see better with them.  If I were vain then I would wear contacts all the time and be humiliated if someone saw me in my glasses.  Not to say that people who wear contacts are vain, but when I wear them it is because I care more what other people think about how I look than I do about I think I look.
     This fable reminds me of the biblical term, "whited sepulchre".  The beauty of the building cannot hide the fact that inside is all rot and decay.  The whiteness is a mask.  Masks are fun to wear on Halloween and they lend us freedom from our inhibitions.  We can also be braver when we wear them, but the fact remains that masks hide what is behind them.
     I sometimes wear a social mask when I am feeling low.  I do not want to bring down others so I pretend that all is well and happy.  Often this mask takes control and I say and do things that are not representative of who I profess to be.  That is the danger of a mask, we let something outside of our souls dictate behavior.  If you don't believe me then re-watch The Mask with Jim Carey.  Of course I do not act as outlandishly as his alter ego, but I do make stupid decisions when I hand over control to a facade.
     Bridling our passions is not the same thing as a mask and is what we should do instead of wearing the mask in the first place.  A bridle is a control apparatus for an animal.  Allowing a bridle to be placed harnesses our usefulness.  I used to think that "bridle your passions" meant control yourself; it doesn't.  The use of a bridle also relinquishes the wearer's control to another.  The best rider to take the reins is God, anyone or anything else will not direct us in the right way and channel us for good.  We could end up at the bottom of a cliff or drowned in a river if we are not careful to hand over the reins to the most responsible and wise Master of us all.
     So my lesson learned, Aesop,  is to be careful of masks, irresponsible riders, and grooms who steal our food.