Mirror image

Hi there. I am here to simply tell a story and I pray there’s a little something in it for you.

We have a local coffee shop here in town that has a comfy couch and a few chairs surrounding a big coffee table. The entire top of this coffee table is a mirror. My little 10 month old and I frequent this establishment and often enjoy some time around this massive mirror. Standing next to this table, she has enough room to just get her head over enough to see her reflection. She smiles, claps her hands, hits the reflection in excitement, moves closer, moves farther away - just enjoying exploring what she can see of herself in the reflection. We spend time like this until her attention span wears thin.

Last week, however, she did something new. Each time she would see her reflection, after smiling and clapping with great joy, she would bend over and check to see if the person in the mirror was under the table. She continued like this with a curiosity that never ceased. She would enjoy the little girl waving back at her, laughing with her and smiling at her. Then, she would check again. Then, back to the shear joy of the experience of the mirror.

The whole time I was observing her, I was watching her learn. Watching her try new things. Watching her wonder where that girl was that kept smiling back at her. And I just kept thinking… do we ever look in the mirror and wonder where the woman looking back at us is? Or how she got here? Do we remember how we were when…? Do we dream about who we will be? Do we know who we are today? Are we who we expected to be? Are we wear we expected to be?

These are such good questions to ask now and then because subconscious unmet expectations can wreak havoc on our relationships and generally cause a disconnect between what ‘should’ be and what actually ‘is’.

Are there things you thought would be a part of your life today? Are there things about yourself you thought would be healed by now? Are there dreams you’ve let go or put on hold? Grab a mirror and allow yourself to ponder some of the above questions. Journal if that’s helpful for you! I love imaging all of us grown women peeking at our reflection and then looking for more of her. As much as it’s a bummer, we’ve all hidden parts of ourself to stay safe or belong at one time or another, so this could be really challenging for you! Go slow, be kind, and see what you see ;)

Big hugs,

Tess Faust