The Paradox of Mistaken Identity (from the series: Photosyntheticism)

She never once questioned who she was until she attended a Masqued Ball, held in some old manor house in rural Sussex. She felt a little uneasy that day in the fancy dress place, when she tried on various costumes and Venetian masques. It felt as though she was standing on a theatre stage in front of an empty auditorium. She chose her costume and she believes she chose well – for when she put the costume on to go to the ball, she felt as though she were stepping into someone else’s clothes.

She never donned her Venetian masque until she stopped her car outside the old manor house – but when she did, the transformation was complete. As the sun slowly set and she walked up the driveway to the door, she left one world and entered into another. The doorman smiled, then bowed and opened the large oak doors for her. There was already a throng of guests milling around under the chandeliers and waltz music drifted on the air from the ballroom. She felt relieved that she had not arrived too early.

“It was the strangest of things,” she said, “nobody recognized me, and yet everyone knew who I was. I had been living my life in the shadow of a mistaken identity, and suddenly this shadow was lifted and cast aside. Even now, I cannot say that I discovered who I was, but at last I knew for certain who I was not.”

“At midnight the music stopped, there was silence, and we all took off our masques”

She glanced at once into the mirror, but she did not recognize the person that stared back at her.