What if your reflection could talk?
Would it agree with how you saw yourself, share your perception of flaws? Would you cry over appearances together, impacted by hateful words of others? Would you and your reflection be friends or would the reflection be the devil’s advocate and whisper more hateful words to you?
Is your reflection a trapped spirit like you are, imprisoned behind a glass cell? Are you both trying to escape to a better life? Where would your reflection go?
What kind of friend would your reflection be? Is your reflection a jokester, always showing you words backwards? Or is your reflection a supportive friend, giving you a pep talk before you leave for class every morning? Shows you how good you look even when you can’t see it for yourself?
When your friends appear in the mirror with you, are your reflection and theirs friends? Does your reflection understand friendship? Your reflection grew up with you – does it remember the person you used to be?
Does your reflection feel the same emotions as you do? Laugh with you at a joke and pun, cry with you over stress and emptiness? Have any regrets about its life with you? Is there anything that your reflection would change?
You think back – you and your reflection have a long history together. You have gone through so many changes, especially over the recent years. Personality, appearance and confidence have all undergone major construction. You think you’ve come out better, but can you face your reflection now that all the construction is complete? What if you look at your reflection and see disapproval? Or worse, nothing looks different?
Tentatively, you raise your head and lock eyes with your reflection. An aura of cautious confidence now surrounds you. All semblances of the child you once were are now gone, replaced with the beginning stages of adulthood. Construction is almost completed, and you are not the same person you were during the initial stages. For the first time, you like your reflection, albeit warily.
You eye your reflection, seemingly looking for approval. You aren’t expecting any answers to your questions, but your reflection surprises you. It tells you that you have always been worthy to face yourself with a smile. It tells you that it doesn’t see your flaws, that you’ve always been pretty and encourages you to look past them to be happy. You hear your reflection say you’ve always been friends, and always will continue to be friends, and that means more than anything anyone has ever said.
Your reflection tells you it’s proud of everything you’ve overcome, and assures you that it will be happy as long as you are. It tells you that you’ve always been strong enough to do it on your own, you just needed a little push. Your reflection tells you that contentedness and happiness is a good look on you, and reassures you that you can go out and face the world, that you can do anything.
You turn away from your reflection, happy and emboldened by its words of support to you. Opening the door, you step out into the world, ready to face it and armed with the knowledge that at least you have one loving friend who will never leave your side.
