Mirror Mirror On The Wall

The mirror.  It can be our friend, or our worst enemy!

I don't know about you, but my bathroom mirror likes me, or at least, I think it does.  Maybe it's a magic mirror that hides flaws!  Maybe, just maybe, it's an evil mirror, that likes to play practical jokes on me!  You decide.

I get dressed in the morning, and I look in the mirror, and I think to myself that I look pretty good today.  Usually, I think that I look thinner.  I leave the house feeling good, and I get to work, and then, it happens.  The elevator doors are mirrored.  The insides of the elevators are lined with mirrors, and there is a huge, full-length mirror in our restroom.  "Holy Crap!  I can't believe that I left the house looking like this!  What was I thinking?  My clothes are too tight.  You can see every single bulge that I have.  How did I think I look thin?  I sure don't look like I thought I did, when I left home this morning!"  All of those thoughts race through my head, simultaneously!  Has this ever happened to you?

Then, of course, there are the evil fitting room mirrors!  They don't like me, at all!  I don't think they like anyone!  They are really spiteful, and cruel!  When I was growing up, and my mother would take me shopping.  There was one department store where my mother hated us trying on clothes.  She said that they had the worst mirrors in the world.  She said that every time she left there, she felt she had to color her hair, or take other drastic measures to make herself look better.  One time she joked that the mirrors were so bad, that they could make someone want to go out, and shoot themselves!  She always left the store feeling less than good about herself.  Now that I am older, I understand!

I know that we are all excited about getting into smaller clothes.  It feels good to try them on, and see that they fit.  That is a very good thing!  Then, it happens again.  The mirrors bring attention to our flaws, and we start to notice every one of them.  The thoughts that go through our heads, are probably something along these lines.  "My legs are flabby.  They look like cottage cheese!  I still have back fat!  My ass is huge!  Look at that skin on my arms!  I look like a flying squirrel!"  (You can thank my son for teaching me the term "flying squirrel arms.")  So, I can go on, and on about flaws in our bodies.  What is it about the fitting room mirrors that makes us notice every single thing that is not physically "perfect" about ourselves?  I'm sure the lighting has something to do with it, but they definitely can, and usually do, bring out the worst in our thoughts about ourselves! 

It seems that  when we catch glimpses of ourselves in mirrors, other than those at our homes, we "see" these things.

We can't let those mirrors take away the joy we are feeling from losing weight, and getting into smaller clothes!  We can't let them ruin our celebrations!  We have to tell ourselves to look at how far we have come.  We have to tell ourselves that we are beautiful, and that we do look good today!  Yes, most of us will still probably have flab, dimples in our butts, cellulite on our legs, flying squirrel arms, but those things do not take away from our beauty.  True, we can tone them, and we will feel better about ourselves, but that doesn't make us any more wonderful than we already are!

If the mirrors make you feel like crying, take a step back and stick your tongue out at it!  Flip the mirror the bird, and get a good laugh!  Cuss it out, if you want to!  Call it names!  Don't let it get the best of you!

It's okay to be "perfectly imperfect."  We can always work on those imperfections.  Celebrate those smaller clothes!  Celebrate your victories!  Celebrate yourself!  Remember, that we are always harder on ourselves, and think worse of ourselves, than others do!

Don't let the mirror steal your joy!  Even with our flaws, we are beautiful - and we are getting better every day!

Always remember – YOU ARE AWESOME!  Go out and make it a great day!

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