Blog #717: The Truth-Telling Mirror

The little girl was laughing and dancing solo
in front of the giant floor-to-ceiling mirror.

Every 30 seconds…
She’d stop and say to the mirror:

“Hello, baby!”

Each time…
The words ignited her fearless dancing passion.

______

I asked her parents…

“How old is she?”

“Two!” they smiled proudly.

“You have a giant star on your hands!” I appreciatively said.

“We know,” they said.

______

But the truth is…

The little girl was far more than an entertaining dance star. As I left the family of three ALL watching the little girl in the mirror, a thought touched my awareness.

“She’s a great teacher.”

______

Of course…

It’s easy to point to the fearlessness in her dancing. Her moves, her spins…her all-out passion for what she was doing was in full “Go for it!” mode.

I think if we all could dance with that kind of inhibition, it would go a long way to erasing the embarrassment our brains have learned to fear and carry.

But that’s the simple lesson to see.

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There’s a bigger one.

As I walked away, a teaching thought eased its way into my head.

“Did you hear her self-talk?

In her self-talk came the little girl’s magical power.

“She loves who she is.”

______

More than likely…

Few of us will ever find the pure two-year-old dancer in us again. IF we even dare get on the floor to begin with, most of us are thinking about the exaggerated number of judging eyes upon us.

But this week’s blog is NOT about living unafraid. Instead, it’s about the conversations we have with ourselves…about ourselves.

Does the mirror say kind, positive, and self-affirming things back at you?

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The mirror shines our deepest insecurities.

We can only feel like a loser if that’s what the mirror tells us.

It points out our negatives.
It shines our blemishes.
It reflects our faults.

If that’s what we choose to see.

Negative thinking will always throw water on the fire that is our potential.

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The negative.

It grows deeper in us when we see the negatives about us.
But the opposite is also true.

Confidence.
Resilience.
Creativity.
Optimism.
Discipline.
Integrity.
Courage.
Loyalty.

They grow in us when we choose to believe and acknowledge they live in us.

______

Here’s a difference-making challenge.

The next time you look in the mirror, show yourself some kindness.

See the best in you.

And when we give ourselves permission to start there, other positive self-beliefs just might wiggle themselves out of hiding, too.

Live what we want to live.
Let’s be who we want to be.

______

Let me speak from my purest heart.

If you’re not loving you, you got no chance to live your best life.

So please…

If you’re feeling down on you, change that crap soon.

Talk to friends who know and love you.
Be reminded of what you offer the world.
Be reminded of the good sprinkles you sprinkle.

You do nothing for you, your closest people or the world when you’re not a fan of YOU.

“Hi, baby!”

It’s time to start loving what you’re bringing.
Or stop immediately what you’re bringing.

S.