I Don't Like That Mask

When Rachel was about three years old, she was very sensitive to certain parts of the culture here that do not come from God. One of these things is the barong masks that you see in many places around the island of Bali.

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The barong is quite an ugly, fanged creature with bulging eyes that is supposed to be one of the “good guys” in Balinese folklore, as opposed to Rangda the witch, a creature who is even uglier. Whenever we passed one of these barong figures, Rachel would hide her face. "I don't like that mask!" she would cry.

Most Balinese children have become so used to seeing this character that they don’t think twice about it. But Rachel had not yet lost her sensitivity to it. 

Of course, I reassured her that it is OK not to like the mask, but she doesn’t need to be afraid of it. By now, at age seven, she has figured that out. She still doesn't like it, but it doesn't terrify her.