Existing Emotion

Sometimes, life is like a poker game.

Everyone brings something to the table, the things that are unique to them. Then players are given a hand of cards that they can manipulate to the extent of their knowledge of the game. In each person’s hands is a set of cards, where some cards hold more value than others. It’s the player’s job to make everyone think that their cards are better than everyone else’s. As the game commences, the stakes get higher and higher. Players start to feel the pressure of the risks associated with the game. To combat this, players develop a poker face. A consistent state that is maintained throughout the game, so the other players can’t catch you in a lie. Hopefully your steadiness can convince the other players to fold and you get to take home the prize.

Lips and cheeks are Mac Cosmetics in Lipmix.

Olivia Kohler

In life, being vulnerable has ties to weakness. Therefore, most humans don’t want others to see through their poker face to find what’s underneath: the broken, the messy, the troubled, or even the blissful. Others may try to get you to fold and expose the rawness of your humanity. We learn at an early age to keep our emotions to ourselves in fear of being taken advantage of. But as the stakes begin to rise with each hand dealt, so do feelings of anxiety, stress, or fear. It becomes hard to mask these negative thoughts until we find an outlet for release.

In this series, we explore the facades that we put up in our lives and imagine ways to navigate around them. We strive to break away from the need for a poker face in our day to day life. To take each new challenge or struggle as a lesson to be learned, as a stepping stone in the path of life. And ultimately to break the cycle of a life long poker game.

Lips and cheeks are Mac Cosmetics.

Olivia Kohler