We do wear lots of masks throughout our lives warriors as some may have read on this blog before. This post isn’t quite as deep as getting to the real us but does involve several “mask” stories of my OWN that became very meaningful. A few are slightly amusing but then a few are well…., not so much. I do believe I’ve mentioned painting the Ultimate Warrior’s mask on my face was never something I’d do. Dana has had her face marked with her own brand of warrior woman paint but I only dabbled in small symbols on my cheeks. After all, he did that for a brief time so for me that was enough.
When my youngest sister was still quite little, I loved coloring and drawing with her. We had a few chalkboards to use for many creations. Guess what I showed her? Yep, the Ultimate Warrior mask. Why did that pop in my head? I wasn’t sure she’d fully understand my intensity back then so it was just called a “cat mask.” O.K., I know it doesn’t really look like a cat face but she bought it and became my muse of choice. She actually does still remember those times! Glad my silliness was so memorable and unforgettable to her. Just like Warrior was and still is to me.
Another funny memory was painting Easter eggs. Being a teenage girl meant most were done with that tradition but again with having a sibling ten years younger made me still participate. I remember painting an egg purple and then adding his mask in the middle with yellow. Those are Easter colors for real! So very proud of how it turned out. I realize this sounds obsessive as perhaps even true fans out there didn’t do this. We all have weird stuff as teens and I gotta say that was mild compared to other things kids my age were doing. 😬Am sure you have your own crazy times too! This was sweet to me and I’ve shared a lot personally so there warriors– you get another interesting tidbit from my past.
These last few are a little bittersweet. When I heard about Warrior’s HOF induction, the months just seemed to fly by as that Spring came fast. Some will know how warm it was that April here in Ohio which is discussed in my book Spirit and Belief. My daughter was still into chalk drawing like her aunt many years ago. I drew the Ultimate Warrior mask on our driveway in many different colors so happy for his upcoming weekend. They were great as I hadn’t even tried drawing that mask in years. My girl never questioned the validity as it’s just a symbol. Little did she know how much it meant to her Mama. *** PAUSE*** A few days later, Warrior passed. 💔
I still could see those colorful masks in one spot of our driveway out my window. It made me so sad, shocked, and angry. With no rain coming, they were erased by me without a trace remaining. It was too much then even with no tears but now, I’d leave them for different reasons. Even though the chalk was erased from that pavement, I could never erase him from my life no matter how hard I tried almost six years ago.
This time also coincided with my daughter having a Dance Party at her school along with face painting. She had these beautiful butterflies on her cheeks and loved them. A few days after Warrior’s passing and I see my girl’s face painted. Of course this isn’t his mask like the other stories but my emotions still fought it.
My Dad’s big 70th birthday party was the next night and with sleep, her butterflies faded a little. She asked me to paint them back on so she could show off her face to everyone. I obliged but told her Mama would do the best I could and to not get mad. My hands were shaking as I picked up that first brush and chose her color. Why? Come on Kathy– this isn’t his mask, what’s wrong with you? Well, that was how much of my grief got displayed. I just told her I was nervous since that wasn’t something she rarely asked of me. Warrior’s mask- No. Face paint-yes. It still mattered a lot. Never could I even put on the mask from the book “A Life Lived Forever.” I had held it up to my face but the strap broke. I wasn’t meant to wear it…
Warrior created his many painted masks for the Ultimate Warrior character which I never ever wanted to replicate. It wasn’t for me but I guess other meaningful mask stories came to be. To even think I had mask stories surprised me until back from my memory bank they were there again. Just like Warrior.
If any of you have ever painted the U.W. mask on yourself or anyone else, bravo! Your masks are meaningful to you just like mine were to me. Warrior painted different masks and each became a story with ultimate meanings. No chalk could ever be erased from my memory. He was there with or without his mask and still will forever be. 💖🧡💛💚🙏🏻
P.S. We recently finally saw the movie “Fighting with my Family” which depicts the true story of Paige in the WWE. I really needed a chalkboard to slide my nails down since it shows WMXXX and Monday Night RAW of April 7, 2014… 😳 The U.W. wrestling buddy doll is also in this movie so sorry for the spoiler alert!! My husband even liked it. Another chalkboard moment.
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