Pretending has several connotations and some of them good, even funny, and some are an important part of growing up; others are just plain human nature for many of those of us who are a part of the human race. When I was a young child I remember my two older sisters pretending to be grown woman trying to walk around in their mother’s high heeled shoes and smearing lipstick around their mouths. My friends and I pretended to be cops and/or robbers. When the second world war broke out, we became soldiers. We even carved pistols and rifles out wood for props. We were always great pretenders. The movie industry has made fortunes based on the art of pretending. Leonardo DiCaprio, a very good pretender, even played the part of an impostor, impersonator, or a great pretender, in the movie with that very name; “The Great Imposter”. Movies, videos etc. are one of the largest industries in the world. People enjoy watching others ‘who are pretending to be others’ doing things that are or have been supposedly done in real life. There was a very popular song from years ago, it was called “The Great Pretender” written by Freddie Mercury that went as follows;
Oh yes I’m the great pretender (ooh ooh)
Pretending I’m doing well (ooh ooh)
My need is such I pretend too much
I’m lonely but no one can tell
Oh yes I’m the great pretender (ooh ooh)
Adrift in a world of my own (ooh ooh)
I play the game but to my real shame
You’ve left me to dream all alone
Too real is this feeling of make believe
Too real when I feel what my heart can’t conceal
Ooh ooh yes I’m the great pretender (ooh ooh)
Just laughing and gay like a clown (ooh ooh)
I seem to be what I’m not (you see)
I’m wearing my heart like a crown
Pretending that you’re still around
Yeah ooh…
Freddie was probably, as his song implied, a great pretender. But being so he was no different than anyone else. Everyone is a great pretender, some much better at it than are others. There are some who say that politicians are the greatest pretenders. At election times they pretend to have their constituents interests in their hearts and minds and then between elections and while at the swamp (Washington DC) they have their lobbyist (wallets) in their hearts and minds. Whatever group we may be referring to, many will have dual purposes, some good and some bad and pretension will most likely play a part in their operation and industry.
In San Francisco the streets are becoming the bedrooms of the homeless. Some are mentally ill or ‘pretend’ to be mentally ill. In a recent article a ‘street person’ said that; ‘I think vampires are real.” San Francisco authorities mostly leave the mentally ill to fend for themselves on the streets along with the homeless. But even the other vagrants complain about people who have mental problems by saying, “Those people make it bad for people like us who just hang out with a sign,” In other words, ‘We, who pretend we can’t work and who live for handouts, have to put up with crazy people. I believe this to be a great truth: That everybody does some pretending, or at least we find ourselves putting our ‘best foot forward’. Nobody would claim to being a pretender because it has a negative connotation. But, if everyone does it and we like to watch others do it (movies), why does it feel awkward to admit that we, too, are pretenders. If we are real honest with ourselves, all of us are ‘once in a while pretenders’. I believe our ‘best foot forward’ is our pretending foot. Everybody, has a ‘best foot forward’, at one time or another, don’t they? Don’t we? Who doesn’t put their ‘best foot forward’ on their first date, on a job interview, when asking for a raise, etc., etc. etc. Possibly there are a few who always have their best foot forward, in that case they are either champion pretenders or angels visiting us pretenders on our earth. Honesty is like a great bright and invasive light, it has a way of reaching into every little niche and cranny in our lives. Sometimes it is hurtful and sometimes just a little embarrassing, for we who are at sometime a ‘pretender’.