This is somewhat challenging to explain. But it is as though I have begun to feel comfortable with this person who stares back at me, and we have previously unknown level of familiarity.
She looks me in the eye. And her eyes are softer and a little more accepting of what she sees when she sees me.
And when I look at her, I pause to really look. I don’t just look up quickly and move on. I take time and honor who she is, even if only for a moment. This happens when I brush my teeth or wash my hands and look up into the mirror or when I unexpectedly spot my reflection somewhere. I pause and honor this person who stares back at me.
And she looks different.
Sometimes you see people only in pictures and then when you see them in person, they look different. Not bad or better, just different. They become alive for you. Maybe you have seen pictures of a friend’s sibling and then when you meet him, he looks similar but now he is moving and breathing and laughing. You see beyond one millisecond in time.
This is how I feel when I look in the mirror.
I kind of love it. I feel like I am meeting myself for the first time. Seeing beyond a frozen sense of self and into the deep, wide places of who I really am. And it isn’t scary or someplace I do not want to go. It is just me.
********
If you have been looking in the mirror during the last few weeks, what are you seeing? An old friend? A new one? New layers of who you thought you were? Confirmation of who you always knew you could be?
And if you aren't taking part in this meditation, I invite you to get up, walk over to a mirror, and look for a moment. What do you see? Who do you see?
