While walking down the
street a few years ago in my hometown of Chicago, I noticed a man coming
towards me with a decorative wall mirror in his hands. As we approached each
other, he stopped and asked, “Do you want to buy a mirror?” I replied “no” as I
continued to walk past the man. To my surprise he shouted to me, “You are
vain.” I chuckled to myself and without any preconceived thought, slightly
turned my head (while continuing to walk) and spoke back, “You need to take a
look into that mirror.” Thankfully, he did not reply and I kept walking until I
was a block away realizing I had stepped out of my comfort zone and made a
comment to a strange man who had the appearance of being addicted to something,
quite possibly drugs.
I was slightly agitated that a complete
stranger had the nerve to call me vain, but more hopeful that he took my advice
and looked in the mirror. Mirrors come in all sizes, shapes and forms. Some are
plain with no distinct features and others are quite elaborate with decorative
finishes. Regardless of the outward garnishes, mirrors have one thing in common.
They tell a story. Some stories are youthful where others show signs of aging.
A mirror will show a transformation of our bodies over the years and when we
decide to make significant changes, the same mirror will reverse the
transformation. We can depend on mirrors to cut, style and curl our hair, put
on make-up or sashay in front of with a fancy new outfit. Businesses rely on mirrors to help us make
decisions about making purchases and mirrors are installed in cars with front,
sides and back views to guide us while driving, which helps to save our lives.
Yes, mirrors tell lots of stories, but most of all mirrors tell the Truth.
The truth is we all need to look in the
mirror of our lives at some point on the journey. We can learn a lot by
studying and examining our life experiences. Each day we look into the mirror
of life, we may discover something new. Imagine when looking in the mirror if a
line reveals you are on a journey. A bump says you have overcome the blocks on
the road. Grey hair is an indication of wisdom and loss of hair means you have
shredded those heavy loads. Mirrors can
be encouraging and at times discouraging. You can make the mirror your friend
or your enemy. My point in the analogies is some things we see in the mirror we
cannot change and others we can by making a commitment to transformation.
Now
days when I think about the man walking down the street selling a mirror, I
consider if he looked in the mirror and made a life change, but I also take my
own advice. Each day I look in the mirror of life and encourage myself with the
thought, “You can do better.” As a life coach, I encourage you to look in your
mirror of truth and move past the things that time won’t change to focus on the
things that really matter, the things you can change.
